Mistaken Identity
by untouchablegoth
Summary: Sookie is an erotic dancer. She has a very important interview tomorrow the only problem is, she recognises her new boss. They were very close at her club last night. Will he recognise her? Will she still get the job? Does he even care? Sookie/Eric AU/AH
1. Dream On

Hi there, this is my first SVM fic so please tell me if I'm doing something completely wrong!

I love Sookie and Eric and hope you all enjoy this story. It's AU and all human with obviously a Sookie and Eric pairing. I've read a lot of fics where Bill is a creep or a bit of a dick but i'm trying not to go that way here.

Disclaimer – I do not own any of these characters, I just like to play with them ;-)

This chapter is all in Sookie's POV.

X

Mistaken Identity

Chapter 1 – Dream On.

X

"Deep breathes," I said to myself, taking a big inhale of air, "You can do this." Running a hand over my short black hair, I looked past the curtain and saw the patrons sitting in front of the stage. "Tonight's the last night, tomorrow will be a new day." Taking another deep intake of oxygen and quickly ran over to a mirror, checking my hair and makeup for the final time before I heard Bill call for me. I plastered on a big fake smile and looked over at him.

"Sookie, it's your spot." Bill was in his early thirties, his dark hair and eyes only made his pale skin stand out more. He was a nice man, good at his job and was always respectful to me even when I felt I didn't deserve it. I had always wondered how he got into a business like this but now wasn't the time to think about things like that.

"Thanks!" And with that word the lights outside went down and the audience hushed knowing that the act was about to start. Some people called her a stripper or exotic dancer. Some just called her a hooker. I choose not to listen to them. This was just a dancing job to pay the bills whilst waiting for my dream job to come about. Don't get me wrong, Sookie Stackhouse loves dancing and what I did here wasn't kinky or demeaning, Bill never asked the girls to get naked or sell themselves, I just danced. I enjoyed it. The money was great and the people were nice, the hours were unsocialable but I don't have much of a life anyway. "Bill, remember I can only stay til midnight tonight. I have that interview tomorrow."

"I know Sook, any chance I can convince you to stay?" Bill joked, offering a friendly hand on my shoulder.

I laughed. "I haven't got the job. Yet!" Flashing a bright smile then stepped up to the curtain just as my stage name was being called over the speakers.

I took a final deep breath in then out, relaxed my face and set my mouth into a slight pout. I heard a women, probably Tara or Arlene, yell "Knock 'em dead Raven!" I shook my head slightly before throwing the thick material out of my way and steping onto the stage.

X

Two hours later and I was standing in front of a dressing table mirror with a facial tissue taking the last traces of dark makeup from my eyes. The lack of sleep and anxiety about tomorrow was creeping up on me, making me fell more tired than usual; I had to do double the amount of numbers then I was suppose to as Dawn, one of the other girls was running late. It was just after twelve and I reached up to start taking the pins out of the dark wig I wore. I hated it, it caused my head to sweat was always so itchy but it gave me some kind of disguise up there and helped me be Raven, sexy and mysterious, rather than Sookie, boring and broke. I heard Bill clear his throat behind me and turned around.

"Sookie..." Bill looked down at his feet. His hands shoved lightly in his pocket, he looked up through his eye lashes and tilted his head to the side slightly.

'_Oh no'_ I recognised that look. Sighing, I put down one of the hair pins that kept my wig in place. "No Bill, I said I couldn't work past midnight!"

"Dawn's in hospital."

"Oh my God, what happened? Is she okay?" Me and Dawn were never close but I still considered myself friends with the other woman, even though she took it out on me whenever Jason blanked her. We were around the same age but the only thing we had in common, with the exception of our job, was Jason. Dawn had always had an on and off relationship with my older brother. At the moment I wasn't sure if they were currently together or not but I still gave a quick pray and hoped that Dawn was okay.

"Her appendix burst. She was rushed into surgery this afternoon. She only just woke up from all the drugs to call us. She's okay now. Just needs to recover, its gunna take a week or two." Bill sounded angry at the situation he had but tried not to let it show, he couldn't blame Dawn for this happening and neither could I, that didn't stop me from being slightly annoyed at the next question I asked.

"Okay. Do you need me to stay?" I knew when not to argue and my friendship with Bill and the other girls made it impossible for me to take off when they were a person short.

"If you can. I'll try and get you home as soon as it dies down." Bill had taken his hands out of his pockets and ran them through his hair. He took a step towards me and casually placed his hand over mine that was currently resting on the table behind me. "I'll pay you double for tonight." I smiled lightly and glanced down at his big pale hand resting on my small tan one. I always knew Bill had a soft spot for me. Always giving me the best tables to dance at and making sure I had a ride home. I took advantage of his feelings once or twice but I never led him on, or did I? I suddenly began to question myself looking at our touching hands.

"Thank you Bill." I said trying to keep my voice soft and gentle as I tried to wriggle my hand out from under his. "Just let me know what routine you want me to do. It'll take about five minutes for me to get ready again." Moving away from the tight space had all of a sudden found myself in between Bill and the dressing table.

Bill looked down at the new distance between his hand and mine, his gaze suddenly turned hard, though it was difficult to tell in the dim room. He let out what I could only make out to be a growl before turning away and running a hand into his hair again. Maybe I should say something? Maybe he's just having a stressful night. I decided to leave and shut my mouth before I reach up and securely put my foot in it.

"Ten minutes. Do the Aerosmith mix. That always gets the boys going and a stag do just came in so they'll enjoy that."

Nodding and picked up an eye liner from the dressing table which lay neatly next to the rest of my make up, I looked slyly in mirror, following Bill's form as he walked away in the reflection. I took a deep breath in, trying to stop the tears from welling up. "Okay, everything's gunna be fine. I'll get out of here by two, in bed by half two, up at seven. You've coped with a lot less sleep then that, Sookie." And I had. There were nights when Gran was sick so I took care of her during the day, then went to work in the evenings only to come home and find Jason drunk on the doorstep having lost his keys. That happened constantly for three weeks until Gran got better and Jason stopped drowning his fear of losing another family member. I looked into my own eyes in the mirror. That was a tough time, but luckily things worked out and I didn't have to be the glue that held our little dysfunctional family together.

Tara ran by wearing a chocolate coloured bikini that was the exact same colour as her skin, she was carrying her shoes in her right hand and was covered in a slight sheen of sweat so I could tell she had just finished her dance.

"Hey Sook, it's crazy busy tonight, I have no idea why, I mean it's been awhile since I worked a normal job but last time I checked, I'm pretty sure people worked Tuesday's and didn't come out on Monday nights!" Tara was my closest friend, in this job and outside in the 'Real World' as we jokingly called it.

"I know, but what can we do? I'm staying later now, Dawn is in hospital." I told her whilst putting on a thin layer of blush to my cheeks.

"I heard. She's gunna be alright though, which is good. Can't be losing her as well as you now, can we?" Tara joked, grabbing a towel and quickly running it over her body. "Bill needs to get more girls, I can't even remember the last time I had a Saturday night off."

"Bill's a good manager. He keeps the scum out and he's careful about who he lets in. That's hard to find in this line of work. I'm surprised we don't have more people wanting to work here." I often did think myself lucky working at Area 6, the name of Bill's club. Bill had a very strict set of rules and if you broke one you were out. He built up a good reputation for himself, the club and the girls who worked there.

Tara laughed. "You think he's picky about who he lets in as a guest, you should she how picky he is about who he lets work here. He asked me if I knew anyone from D-Light that would be looking for work and gave me a huge do and do not's list." D-Light was the closest place like Area 6 in LA. Only they were a bit more down and dirty then Bill's place was, I once got offered a job there but turned it down as soon as they asked me what my 'hourly rate' was. Confused by this statement, it quickly dawned on me that this wasn't what I was looking for and I wasn't what they wanted either.

"Tara, I probably won't be leaving, with my lack of sleep and the fact I have no work experience except this," I said gesturing down at my small green bikini and high heeled shoes, "They'll probably look at me and laugh me out of the interview." I felt the tears build up again and pushed down the shame and fear that caused me to bow my head to the ground.

Tara walked over to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders, I laughed to myself, even with my heels on and Tara barefoot, we were only just the same height. "Listen here Miss Stackhouse. You are a smart, beautiful and creative person. I've seen your work. As soon as they see your photos they'll be begging you not to leave until you've accepted a job there. I mean they gave you an interview! That's gotta be a good sign."

"I only got the interview because Lafayette pulled some strings." I had always wanted to be a lawyer, if you asked me when I was five years old up until I was seventeen what I wanted to do then the response was always 'lawyer'. That was until Mom and Dad died, my face instantly frowned at the memory. All my dreams shattered and I had to put a complete stop on my life, dropping out of school to work, supporting Gran and my brother. It was only when I turned nineteen and Gran brought me a camera for my birthday that I even thought about photography. I had gone to visit my parents' graves and taken my first photo of their head rests, surrounded by flowers and grass. The light had brushed through the trees and the beauty of the still image, so full of sadness and love... The same photo made Jason cry and Gran had pushed me into trying to take more photos. It was only supposed to be an artistic outlet while I worked in a boring job in a local fast food franchise, but I soon fell in love with it and began building up a portfolio. It had been four years since I had taken that first photo and I still had no luck finding work. After all, who wanted an uneducated girl with no experience?

I looked up at Tara who was putting a tight t-shirt on top of her bikini. I had known Tara for years, having gone to high school with her though we didn't really spend much time together until after I dropped out. Tara dropped out the year before me, having to take care of her mother full time because she was too drunk to take care of herself. We often saw each other working odd jobs and politely stopped and exchanged 'hello's' and 'how are you's'. Then we decided to have lunch together once, well it wasn't really decided, we just had our lunch at the same time and there were no other free chairs in the cafe so I excused myself and asked if we could share. We got pretty close then and never have been far away since. I had also always known about Lafayette, Tara's cousin, who worked for a well known fashion magazine but never went into too much detail as I thought it was rude. But last month when I met Lafayette for the first time and he offered to put in a good word for me when a job came up, I smiled gratefully, thinking he was only being polite but secretly screaming for joy. Only last week, I received a phone call from a strange woman, asking if I was available on Tuesday for an interview as her boss loved my photos. I asked how they had seen my work and the woman quickly said Lafayette had given them some prints. I nearly cried out with delight but remained calm over the phone as the other women didn't sound like the type to appreciate my excitement.

Tara's laugh brought me out of my thoughts just in time for me to see Bill walk through the door at the other end of the room. "Sook, if you're photo's were rubbish they would have kicked Lafayette out but they didn't! You'll get that job. I can just feel it!"

I smiled and hugged my best friend. "Thanks Tara."

"Sookie, change of plan. The stag party just hired out the private suite, can you dance in there instead? It'll be less people and will probably finish up before the rest of us do so you can go home early and get some beauty sleep." Bill threw a smile at me and glanced over at Tara who was running off to change her shoes, flashing me a last smiled before disappearing behind a door. "Not that you need it."

I grinned widely and gave Bill a hug. "Thanks Bill, that'd be great. Let me just get dressed and I'll be right there." I loosened my arms around him but he lingered a bit too long before releasing me, causing me to panic about just how friendly I was with my boss.

"I'm sorry about this Sook, I promise this won't happen again. You always go that extra mile to help support the team here. I'll be sad when you leave." Bill caught my gaze and he smiled lightly as he brushed away a loose strand of black hair from my wig.

My heart paused for a moment, not knowing quite what was about to happen. I blinked a couple of times, looking at him, not sure what to do, so I sucked in a deep breath between my teeth and spoke. "You all know I love it here, I'll miss ya'll too. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let's get tonight over with so I can forget about it and sleep, then go into that interview tomorrow with my head held high and no bags under my eyes! Yawning in front of your potentially new boss is never a good thing."

Bill laughed, and all of a sudden the tension in the room vanished. "Brilliant, you've got around five minutes whilst the party in there settles down. They seem like a nice bunch, your usual business men type. Well, men and one woman."

I raised an eyebrow at the last comment. We didn't ban women from coming in, we just didn't get a huge number wanting to enter in the first place. "Alright, is it Sam bartending in the private area tonight?"

"Yeah, he wasn't happy I let them have it so last minute but they paid double upfront."

I smiled kindly, "I'm sure he'll understand. How could you say no? The room would just have been sat there empty if you didn't agree."

"Exactly, that's why I like you Sookie, you've always had brains and beauty."

"And that's why you're paying me double. Can Tara, Holly, Daph and Arlene cover the main stage alright on their own?" I asked, suddenly worried about the other girls, Tara had just finished her set, Arlene and Daphne were serving drinks all night in the audience and Holly had just taken to the stage.

"They'll be fine, now hurry up and get ready!" Bill said before swiftly leaving.

Apologizing and running over to a rail of outfits, I quickly took off my heels and began to change out of my previous bikini into one of a different colour and then pop a pair of blue cut off denim shorts and a button up checked shirt, grabbing a hat and a pair of cowgirl boots, I jogged over to a set of stairs in the corner that led to the private area. With a new burst of energy I whispered to myself that this will all be forgotten in the morning and I'll be amazing in my interview.

As I slipped on the boots, I began to go over my portfolio mentally, reminding myself to put that latest picture in there before I went to sleep. Who knew, maybe it would be the photo of Sam cleaning the bar when the club was all closed that got me the job.

I stood up and turned, waiting for the music to get going before I walked out, hopefully this crowd only wanted a couple of dances, a bit of a strip tease, then a lap dance for the groom to be and I would be free to leave. Sighing, before plastering on a big smile, I thought to myself at least the tips were good.

I did a couple of dances on stage which went down very well with the boys and when I was only wearing the usual bikini top and underwear I walked down the edge of the stage and smiled brightly at the gentlemen closest to me. There was a tall brunette man who was standing to the side, he was cheering the loudest during the routine so you could guess he was the 'ring leader' of the group.

Walking slowly over to him, I pouted slightly and raised up a hand, delicately motioning for him to come over, which he was more than happy to oblige. As he bent down towards me I grabbed the top of his collar and ran a hand over his stubble.

"Hi there," My smile only broadened when I saw him blush, how sweet, this boy was a charmer. "I was just wondering who the special man here tonight is, I thought I would give him a little..." I carefully paused over the next word, taking my time to get this man excited and nervous all at once. "Treat."

The man laughed slightly and looked down, either at his feet or at my obvious cleavage. "Well, that would be me." I was taken aback by this comment and raised an eyebrow curiously. Usually the groom to be was in the middle of the crowd, acting nervous but enjoying himself quietly, if this was the man that they were all here for why was he standing at the edge of the group?

"Really now? Well isn't it lucky I found you." I said in a sugary voice, trying turn the situation around.

"Not really, I'd love to enjoy the traditional lap dance but I thought, being my party and all, if you could help loosen up a good friend of mine who needs it a whole lot more than me?" The man spoke softly, like he had planned this whole evening. Even more curious, I thought, contemplating kicking up a little fuss and making sure it was the groom who got the dance, but decided to go along with it, hell, I always liked stirring things up and it seemed as if this was the man's plan all along.

"Well, who am I to deny the groom to be?" Both of us laughed, aware that all the men in the room were now watching the man and me very closely. "Who is this man that needs to relax a bit."

The dark haired man's eyes flickered up briefly to sort out where his friend was, then came back to meet mine. "The blonde man, longish hair, looks like he has a stick up his ass. He's currently sitting at the bar with a scotch and soda. Probably wondering why he let himself get dragged here." He flashed a warm, knowing smile then placed his hand lightly behind my shoulder before guiding me in the right direction. "I promise they'll be a huge tip in it for you. He's my boss and has been riding us all for months."

"And who might you be?"

"Alcide. Nice to meet you Raven. I greatly enjoyed the show, you are very beautiful." I couldn't help but giggle at his politeness and even using my stage name.

I laughed lightly, thanking and winking up at the groom before walking over in the blonde man's direction. My initial thoughts as I walked up to him were that he was very handsome but seriously did need that stick removed from his ass. He was dressed in a full suit, tie and all whilst the other men, though dressed in shirts, all had smart jeans on at least to make them look more casual. He was sitting at the bar, chatting, or more like arguing with a woman, who I could only assumed this was the female member of their party Bill mentioned earlier. The woman caught my eye and instantly guessed what my plan was, her eyes lit up and a very crafty smirk appeared on her face. The man must have noticed and followed her gaze. His eyes caught mine, all my cockiness left me as I nearly tripped up on my own feet. I was suddenly struck with just how stunning this man was. His blonde hair framed a strong, movie star face, his eyes were such a beautiful light blue that I almost stopped. But his brow was crinkled up and his mouth was set in a tight line. He was not happy with this little plan at all. I realised how tall he was as he stood up from his stool and looked as if he was about to leave. I suddenly noticed how all the chatter in the room had died down and everyone was looking between me and him.

Who was this strange man that had the rest of his party so on edge? He never broke my stare and I began to worry about what I was doing. I glanced down quickly and spotted there was no wedding ring on his finger, but then maybe that woman was his girlfriend. Was I about to get pounced on by another woman? I looked back up at him only to find he had taken a step towards me and I took a sharp breath in.

Who was he? And why was my heart beating so powerfully in my chest?

X

Hope you liked it! Please review and give me any ideas or comments, I'm not great at spelling so please let me know if anything is wrong or i've missed out words.

Also if someone would like to beta me then please let me know, i'm not really sure how that stuff works though.

I'm looking at posting one chapter a week, but reviews do encourage and inspire me as i'm sure most of you know ;-)

Thanks for reading!


	2. Bad Things

Wow. I've never had that many reviews for one chapter before! Thank you all so much!

Patito – Sookie doesn't really feel less of herself because she's an exotic dancer, she just wishes she was doing something because she loves it rather than because she has to.

Lokis Mistress –Thank you, my spelling and grammar isn't my strong suit! I hope this chapter keeps your attention.

Vamp Winter – I love AH Sookie/Eric too! They are all I read, along with some AU's.

Itshopkittens – Hi, thanks for the review, I'm trying my hardest to keep Sookie true to the sweet and southern girl we all love. But I'm sorry if she slips up as this is a very thin line I'm trying to walk on lol. I hope you enjoy it and please feel free to yell at me if I do anything horrible with the characters.

Missus T – The interview won't be til the next chapter I'm afraid. But Thanks for the review and I hope you like this chapter.

LB123 – Thanks for the review, Thanks for the great review, I hope this chapter explains a bit more about why I made Eric the way I did. I was really worried about how much detail to go into when talking about the dancing, I know who annoying it can be but I didn't want to just leave it out, but I hope this chapter isn't tedious for you. Enjoy and thank you again.

TeaCupHuman – Thanks for the review, and I love your pen-name.

Vane3131 – Thank you for the review, it made me laugh when I read it.

Remusgrl01 – I know the feeling, lap dancing for Eric would kill me. I don't know how Sookie was able to do it. Thanks for the review. I hope the lap dance doesn't disappoint.

Dragonfey57 – Thank you for the notes, I really do appreciate them. Please tell me if something here causes confusion or if it could be worded better so the reader doesn't lose focus.

Lauren, Hireable, stephaniesmeow, Rena Howard, pinkygirl01, outinritefield1, Miffie, ESFAN08, ericsgirl1, OldAsDirt, Claire, svmfan1, Kitlina, frlarsson, Orionsbabydoll, ShellCat and Lilime – Thank you all for the great reviews, I really hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you and please feel free to yell and scream at me if I've done horrible things with Eric. This chapter's a tiny bit longer, I hope you all love reading it as much as I have loved writing it! And yes, Kitlina, you were right.

Disclaimer – I do not own any of these characters, though I do own my own bottles of TruBlood ;-)

This chapter is all in Eric's POV.

X

Mistaken Identity

Chapter 2 – Bad Things.

X

I was pissed off. The first problem I was having about this whole evening was, who had a bachelor party on a Monday night? They all had work tomorrow morning and they all knew me, I don't take 'food poisoning' as an excuse to miss work. Second, who invited me? I know Alcide, he's a nice guy who works hard and does a damn good job but as soon as it hits five thirty Alcide left work and I never made a conscious effort to befriend the man. But here I was, sitting in a dim strip club which all the other men had tried to convince him was a 'dance' club, waiting for a 'dancer' to come and take all her clothes off so we could cheer, drink, go home then find ways to call in sick and not do our jobs tomorrow morning.

Pam was trying to get my spirits up, buying me my first and only drink, a scotch and soda, which was actually a good brand and quite nice. She told me that it would only be a couple of drinks in a local pub, wishing Alcide good luck and making all the typical marriage jokes, and it was my managerial duty to show my face. But slowly the others had drunk more and Alcide suggested this club, Area 6, calling it "sophisticated and entertaining". Bull shit. The place stunk of beer and there were enough red tassels that I'm sure Aladdin must be hiding around the corner. I looked over at all the men, who were gathered around the stage and laughing loudly at some joke. I sighed and scanned the room looking for Pam, who was chatting to a waitress. I rolled my eyes and hoped I wouldn't be driving a tipsy Pam and date back to hers. Like my day hadn't been bad enough. A new intern spilt coffee over the first draft of the next months issues front cover, which would have been fine except he kept apologizing constantly ever time he saw me for the rest of the day. Then Pam kept nipping in feeding me line by line trying to convince me to agree to come out then when I finally caved she kept nipping in telling what not to wear. I ended up just swearing at her and yelling for her to get out. Finally, which was the underlining reason behind my awful mood today, it was the two year anniversary of Kate. Kate...

I shut my eyes tightly and used my thumb and fore finger to press the corners and stop the tears from building up. This was pointless, why was I here? I slammed my drink on the bar and began to stand up when a hand firmly gripped my arm.

"You okay there?" I turned and looked up at the bar tender. He seemed friendly enough, not the kind I imagined worked in a place like this, average height so he was short compared to me. He tilted his head towards and door and then back to me, asking a silent question. "You not having a good time?"

"This isn't really me." I responded, unsure why I was telling this man. Maybe it was because I couldn't tell anyone I was here with, it would compromise my authority.

The man behind the bar nodded, a knowing look appeared on his face. "I understand, but this place isn't like the others. It's more about having a good time with friends who share a common interest. You should be happy for your friend, I'm sure you'll like the show so just sit back down." His grip on my arm tightened briefly that I wasn't even sure if he meant to do it. "And enjoy the dancing." I looked down at his name badge. Sam. I narrowed my eyes at him and slowly sat back down in the same stool I was perched on before. Taking a big gulp of my scotch, I thought I might as well stay, I'd have to give Pam a lift back to her place anyway, a favour I'm sure she planned to trick me into staying late. I wouldn't be able to drive this close to drinking anyway.

Running a hand through my hair as I stared at the empty stage. I wasn't always like this. I was once a fun, happy and carefree man who was working hard to make a good name in the manic fashion publishing industry but I knew how to relax. I had close friends; most of them were surrounding me now and I had a girl I was crazy about. I missed that man. I missed coming home and finding a beautiful girl waiting for me with dinner, a smile and a kiss waiting to be placed on my lips. I missed my perfect little life then and I almost missed my naive self. I exhaled loudly at my stupid thoughts. I was silly back then, thinking I was in love, completely blind to the facts. I wouldn't be where I was today if I was still that laid back man. Though I would probably be happier...

A man's voice introduced the evening's entertainment and everyone started to clap. I looked over at Pam who was cheering encouragement, I suppressed the urge to growl at their actions but I decided that with the crazy schedule they all work to, they all deserved a night to relax. I instantly recognised the song, Jace Everett's Bad Things, not the song I would have expected to play, then again I don;t spend much time hanging around in strip clubs. Pam caught my eye and winked before laughing and looking back at the stage. I followed her gaze just as the woman 'Raven' was stepping out onto the stage.

The first thing that struck me was the hat she wore over her short jet black hair. Her hair was cut in a dramatic angle to emphasise her high cheek bones. She was a curvy girl, not big, far from it, but not skinny and harsh like the waitresses we saw before moving into the private area. She smiled at the crowd and started swaying her hips to some soft rock song that was playing. I can see why this place wasn't like the others instantly. The way she danced was mesmerising. She made it look so easy and comfortable. Not at all trashy and she knew just what to show without being slutty and at the same time not being just a tease. I saw a smile on her face and she was softly singing along with the song. It was barely noticeable, I'm sure everyone else in the room are preoccupied with other things, except I was watching out for it. There was something I couldn't put my finger on but I wanted to stand up and dance with her, a feeling I instantly pushed down and dared not to think about again. This girl was called Raven? She seemed more like a dove. Watching her body move and her hands slowly work their way up and down her body, undoing the buttons of her cowgirl style shirt, it felt like a weight had been lifted off my chest. I forgot about everything, where I was, who I was there with, damn, I couldn't even think of my full name. All I could focus on were her gorgeous eyes, a soft, light blue full of life, her petite nose, her full lips humming along with the tune with a hint of a smile.

This song was so appropriate, I thought bitterly to myself. I shocked myself when I suddenly imagined how it would feel if I pushed my hand into those tight cut off jean shorts and felt her, wet and hot at my fingertips. I felt a strain in my pants and was suddenly happy I was wearing my loose fitting, comfortable suit trousers. I looked around and all the other men seemed entranced by this woman and Pam was almost drooling like some silly cartoon character.

The dance numbers were over all too quickly and I was fighting the urge to ask the bartender a question or two about Raven. I turned to look where that Sam fellow was but was stopped by Pam coming up and standing next to me. I glanced down at her, not bothering to turn on the stool. I couldn't let her see how that dancer had affected me.

"Yes Pam?" I asked trying to sound as bored and angry as I was before.

"You like the show?" I looked down my nose at her and saw the almost famous smirk on her lips. Damn her. When did she even look away from the stage to see me? I tried to call her bluff but I knew it was useless.

"It was bearable, I suppose." It was more than bearable, that woman was mesmerising. Devine even.

"Eric, don't bullshit me. I can still see your mind trying to fuck her against the stage. Though I'm sure you're not the only person thinking that." Pam, ever the subtle one. I glanced around to see how all the other men were behaving, I saw what she meant, many had a slight hazed look over their eyes revealing their lust filled thoughts. "See, I can see you looking around, I'm right here. If you behave nicely I'm sure I could get you a lap dance." I glared coldly down at her.

"Pam, if you do anything like that which would damage my reputation as everybody here's manager, then I will be forced to do something to redeem myself, like fire my personal assistant." I felt a smirk tug on my lips.

Pam rolled her eyes in that childish way that made me love her. "You would never. You may act like Mr Cold as Ice, but you and I both know that's not who you really are." She gave me a stern look. She still continued to amaze me at how one minute she can be so brutal and fierce and the next she can make me feel warm and almost fuzzy."Now, you want me to get you a hand job or not?" Almost...

"I don't think this is that kind of place, Pam." I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Fine, I'm hoping she lives on my side of the fence anyway." She waved her hand to the bar tender and asked for a glass of red wine before leaning against the bar next to me.

We watched as the raven haired beauty started dancing to another song, this time she moved slowly and much more sensually. I felt my cock strain so much I was shifting uncomfortably on the stool. The woman was slowly dragging a hand over her stomach and down towards her wonderfully curvy thighs, I had to cough to keep myself grounded. I heard Pam give an appreciative moan and knew she was thinking along the same lines as me.

"What time do you think she finishes work?" Pam asked me as the dance finished and the music faded.

I glanced at my watch. 12.25. "Pam, in case you and everyone else here forgot, we all have work tomorrow. It's going to be a long day, there's going to be a lot of stress with all this fucking interviews on top of the next issue being ready to print. It's really irresponsible staying out this late, drinking and I don't want that impacting all of our jobs come tomorrow morning." I know I was getting over stressed and angry but that stripper has gotten me all flustered and I wasn't thinking straight.

Pam set her mouth into a tight pout as I all but yelled at her. I could see her brain ticking, waiting for the moment to strike. Why did I have to start this with her? I always end up losing, but for some reason I still felt the need to.

"Well in case you hadn't realised Mr Northman." Boy was I in trouble. "Everyone here, myself included, have been working to the bone to get this issue ahead of schedule because we know the new interns all fuck up. We have been staying late, getting in early and skipping lunch breaks because we all want this magazine to be the best it can be. So, please excuse us for having a night out to relax, forget about work and celebrate Alcide getting married, because fuck knows her deserves it. His fiancé nearly called off the whole thing when she found out they couldn't have a honeymoon because he has to go to Chicago two days after the wedding. Maybe you should stop worrying about work for just one evening. Maybe that'll give you enough time to get over Kate and pull the stick out of your ass."

I felt like she'd slapped me. She hit me right where it hurt most.

"Pam, you know I love you like a sister but if you ever speak to me like that again, I don't care if it's outside of work, I will not have you talking about me and Kate-"

"You and Kate? There is no 'You and Kate'. I love you so much, it hurts to see you like this, like some lost little puppy who keeps barking because he's scared. You need to look around and see that you have people who care about you."

"This isn't the right time or place for this." I growled down at her. I saw her glance over my shoulder, which is no easy thing even with me sitting down and her in those heels, she smirked.

"Oh, I think now is the perfect time." I turned around. I was going to kill her for this.

I saw the dancer walking towards me. She looked stunning, her light blue eyes sparkling. She was wearing a light pink bikini and soft brown cowgirl boots and as she took a couple steps closer to me, I forgot how to breathe. Fuck. I'd seen beautiful girls before, hell, I worked for a fashion magazine, beautiful girls threw themselves at me so they could get a chance to be in an issue. But there was something about her which had caught me by surprise. I stood up and glanced for the door, I needed some fresh air, I don't think I'd be able to stop myself from doing something stupid or embarrassing if she came any closer. She took another step closer, or did I take a step towards her? I saw her take a sharp breath in, I nearly credited myself for her reaction but I knew it was probably the fact that everyone else in the bar had shut up and were currently watching us both too close for comfort. My eyes pierced hers and I felt instantly like I knew her. I had a mental image of us having dinner, her laughing at a idiotic joke I made, sipping wine, sharing cheesecake, the walk back to hers and me kissing her at the door, lightly at first, pulling back, whispering her name.

"Raven..." Abruptly I realised that Raven probably wasn't her real name. I snapped back to the room and by this time she was standing right in front of me.

She opened her mouth slightly; about to whisper something, I bent down closer to hear her. She tip toed up to my ear and spoke in a soft voice that nearly had me grab her. "Hey honey, you seem a bit tense." She brushed a hand lightly along my arm, through my suit jacket and shirt I couldn't be sure if she did or if my imagination was just wishing it did.

I breathed out. "You have no idea." She looked deep into my eyes when she heard me speak and confusion crossed her features, I silently cursed my accent.

But then she let out an amazing laugh, my heart soared into my throat. "How about you come take a seat over by the stage and I can try and help you..." She paused for affect and I had to scream mentally to myself. "Relax." Something ignited in me and I couldn't help but growl down at her. She smiled softly and her eyes heatedly looked up at me and she lightly grabbed my hand, dragging me over to the stage, I heard Pam laugh behind me. I looked over at her and saw her slap Alcide's hand. I knew they had to have something to do with this.

I sat down obediently on the edge of the stage and she pushed my legs together, hovering above my face. Even with me sitting down, I was only a head shorted than her. I breathed in her sent and was instantly flooded with vanilla and honey, much nicer than my lonely scotch. I opened my eyes and looked up at Raven, who was currently running her hands through my hair, down my neck and along my shoulders. She slowly slid off my jacket and flung it behind me onto the stage she was earlier dancing on. I cleared my throat and had to glare at a couple of colleagues before turning my attention back to her. I was going to hear a lot about this tomorrow.

"Excuse me if I'm wrong, but isn't it usually the groom who gets the lap dance at his bachelor party?" It took all my effort to not run my hand through her hair and along her jaw. She smiled again and I couldn't help but smile back. I felt a tingle deep in my gut that I haven't felt since- Well, in a long time.

"True, but you are a special case." I heard someone whistle to my left and immediately felt angry. I cursed myself and told myself to calm down and not get so worked up. "Now, sit back and trust me."

"Trust you?" That was asking too much of me. Trust was a big issue with me. I tried to dismiss the thought, she obviously didn't mean it like that. I exhaled and nodded. "Trust you."

She smiled widely again and I was glad I had said the right thing to get the sparkle in her eyes. "Good." She pushed my lightly back and undid my tie. She brought her mouth to my neck and licked above my collar. My skin was on fire and I reached up and rested my hand on the bass of her neck. She swiftly took off my tie and moved away from my fingers. "Now don't be naughty, no touching."

I groaned at her words and she draped my tie around her neck. There was nothing sexier yet innocent about this woman. She undid the first couple of buttons of my shirt and I couldn't help but close my eyes briefly. They instantly flew open when she pushed my knees apart and moved closer to my body. I was very aware of all the eyes on us. I spotted a couple of phones being held up and damned the makers of camera phones and Facebook. I would only be a matter of time before these got loaded on there. I pulled my eyes away from the blinking red lights and flashes and sought out Raven's gaze. She winked at me and continued to dance in-between my legs. I wanted to touch her. I needed to but knew I couldn't, which only frustrated me more. I yelled at myself for being such a caveman and grabbed the edge of the stage.

What seemed like an eternity but not long enough she stopped her movements and leaned down so our faces were level. "Good boy." She moved closer and I assumed she was going to whisper something in my ear when she touched my jaw. I turned my head slightly towards her and felt her lips brush against mine. It was electric, her lips were so soft and warm. I felt her push herself closer to me but it was so brief I couldn't be certain, she pulled back and I could see her breathing hard, either from the kiss or the dancing. I was hoping for the former but my bitter self reared its head and told me it was probably the dancing and the shock of me trying to kiss her after she told me no touching. I swore and ran a hand through my hair before attempting to meet her eyes.

"Sorry. That was-" I began, though I was cut off by her sweeping in close again and brushing her lips on my cheek.

"Naughty." She whispered when she was close to my ear and pulled back before turning around and walking towards the stage steps and behind the curtain. I followed her gorgeous hips as the swayed but was suddenly distracted when Pam and Alcide came and sat either side of me.

"Well that looked like fun. How do I get me one of those?" Pam asked, her voice calm and deep.

"Oh I'm not sure Eric would let you. He seemed quite smitten with Raven, if I do say so myself." Alcide chimed in.

I was suddenly back on planet earth. Standing up and turning to face the two pests, I scowled down at them. "Okay, you've had your fun, now let's go Pam. We have a long day tomorrow and I think you got what you came for. Alcide-" I paused when I spotted Pam's eyes trailing down my front. I remembered my shirt being opened and glanced down at my bare chest on show. I blow out a frustrated sigh and began to do my buttons up. "Alcide, thank you for inviting me. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Was Raven's performance not...satisfactory for you?" Fucking hell Alcide.

"No." I shot at him. I grabbed Pam's wrist as she stood up and noticed her glance around. I needed to get out of here. I was embarrassed enough and I didn't need any more of her scheming.

"Sorry?"

"Fuck off." I swore under my breath in Swedish and turned around.

"Forgetting something?" I heard Pam call behind me, in a sickly sweet voice. Looking over my shoulder, I saw she had my jacket in her hand.

"Leaving. Now." I spoke through my clenched teeth.

I heard Pam sigh, "Fine." She followed me.

"Go get your stuff," I took my jacket from her hands. "I'll meet you at the car." When she was out of sight, I turned to Alcide. "What the hell was that about?"

"Come on mate. We all know how stressed you've been, me and Pam thought you could use a little fun. Why? Didn't you?"

"That's not the point. You undermined my authority and humiliated me in front of my staff." Hopefully if I made a big enough deal out of this then he would let the fact I clearly enjoyed myself go.

"Eric, we're your friends, first and foremost. Pam was worried and honestly Debbie would kill me _and_ the dancer if she found out _I'd_ gotten a lap dance. " True, Debbie was crazy. "Look, we all need a night off, you more than any of us. Shit man, why was the last time you went on holiday?"

"France last month."

"That was business, you spent eight hours in meetings, three at a show and then went back to your hotel to have a video conference with us back here. You're wound up too tight and if you don't blow off some steam then who knows what you'll do." Alcide stood up and patted his hand on my shoulder. "I went about this the wrong way, but I needed to prove a point. You need to have a night off, go to the movies, ask a girl out on a date, go to a casino, whatever. Just turn yourself off once in awhile." He gave me one last pointed look before heading back to the rowdy crowd of men cheering for him. Me and Alcide have been friends for awhile, before I got this job. I was lucky he still stuck by me and worried about me. He was a good friend and I had treated him like crap these past few months. I must find a way to repay him, but not now. Not after this stunt he pulled tonight. Though if he hadn't have set this up then I wouldn't have the lingering tingle and warmth on my lips from where Raven kissed me...

I left the club five minutes later after saying a quick goodbye to everyone and leaving a tip at the bar for the bartender and the dancer, I thanked him and wished him a good night.

I met Pam by my car. She was leaning up against the passenger side, arms crossed, one ankle in front of the other and that smirk on her lips. "I got her number."

I nearly choked on air. "Who's?" Praying it wasn't my dark haired goddess.

"Wouldn't you like to know." She winked at me.

"Get in." I opened my door and slipped into the Corvette smoothly.

"No wonder you don't have a girlfriend with chat up lines like that!" Pam joked. I half smiled and shook my head.

I turned to see Pam already texting the girl whose number she had, as far as I could make out it was a woman called Kennedy. I think that was the brunette girl from earlier, she had a beauty queen look about her with a bright white smile to match. "Pam?"

She looked up at me, she must have heard the soft tone in my voice. "Yes, Eric?"

"Thank you for trying." I smiled weakly at her. She smiled back.

"That's okay. You'll get there one day. She really did a number on you." I reached over to hug her when she backed up against the door of the car, arms outstretched.

"What are you doing?" She asked, shocked at the idea of my hugging her. I laughed.

"I'm sorry, sometimes I forget you're actually a cold hearted bitch who hates human contact." I joked. I turned on the engine and looked around, making sure it was all clear before moving.

"Not all human contact. Just yours. I don't want to get frigid jack-ass on my new coat." I looked at my watch and saw it was just after one. I'd have a good five hours sleep before I had to be up and getting myself ready for a morning of tedious interviews. Fuck, I checked my pockets of my jacket, finding them empty. I sighed then pulled out of the car park, heading home. I liked that tie. Ah Well. It was totally worth it, just seeing it wrapped around that beautiful long neck. I turned to Pam, continuing with our conversation.

"Fuck you." I couldn't keep a straight face around her.

"You're one to talk! I gave you a stripper and all you could do was whine like the little bitch you are." She had a point. I haven't looked at or felt that way about anyone since Kate left me, but there, out of nowhere, the short black haired woman had stolen my breath and I still couldn't breathe properly. I smiled for the first time and as ridiculous as it was, I saw myself having a relationship with her. Something I haven't felt in a long time, a future to look forward to.

X

Thanks for reading!

Please feel free to review, I do really appreciate them and try to reply to them all.

Again, if there are any spelling mistakes please let me know. It's really hard to spot them when you've written the story, your mind kind of sees what it wants and knows what should be there, rather than what actually is.

Thanks again.

Xxx


	3. Poker Face

Baronessjai – Hey, your review made me laugh so much, I get getto myself when excited so I understand. This is my first Southern Vampire Mystery fic but I have written a few before, when I was much younger.

Ncvampfan – I like your way of thinking, Eric is very professional so if he did recongise Sookie as Raven he would still try and judge her by her work and not her history. Though Eric can also be hasty so who knows! Guess you'll have to wait and see! Also, sorry to disappoint, but Eric has never met Sookie before so the whole 'looking deep into eyes' thing has no more meaning other than they are both hot for each other.

Foreveraddicted – Thank you for the review, I'm glad you like my all human fic and I hope this doesn't disappoint.

ShellCat – I know, who is crazy enough to leave Eric? Well if Kate decides to show up, which probably won't be for awhile, we can all ask her. Thanks for the review!

MissusT – Thanks so much for the review, I'm glad you are enjoying this story. I'm holding back on the interview so you won't see it til the next chapter. Sorry to disappoint but I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Kitlina – I hope this chapter provides for temporary relief to cool that fire in your brain! Enjoy and thanks for the review.

Lucy – Hi there, it is purely a coincidence that his Ex's name is Kate. I needed an original character and didn't think anyone in the books was called Kate. Nothing more. Though it's a good idea... lol.

Orionsbabydoll – The neck/kiss thing isn't normal, but you'll find out more in this chapter. Thanks for the review. Hope you enjoy it!

LB123 – Thanks for pointing that out to me! I changed Eric and Alcide's relationship half way through the chapter. Sorry! Well, I hope you enjoy this chapter and I really appreciate your reviews.

Gas, OldAsDirt, VampireBookAddict, ericsgirl1, ericplenty, TeaCupHuman, Vamp Winter, Kim, patito, KiraKiralina, Aiko, cheksley, msbennet88, Vane3131, frlarsson and Pinkygirl01 – Thank you all for the reviews and I hope you enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoied writing it. There isn't much Eric but there will be in the next chapter. Please let me know what you think and if there are any glaring mistakes, I really appreciate it.

Disclaimer – I do not own any of these characters, I do have a Merlotte's Bar and Grill T-shirt though. I like to wear it on Sunday nights.

This chapter is from Sookie's POV.

X

Mistaken Identity

Chapter 3 – Poker Face.

X

I couldn't help the smile that wouldn't seem to disappear when I walked through the curtain to behind the stage. It was silly but I couldn't help myself. That man was gorgeous! I had broken a couple of rules when dancing for him, like that kiss. I shouldn't have tried to kiss him on the cheek but I just felt the need to, this man was so tightly wound. When he twisted his head slightly and his lips found mine, I should have pushed him away. But instead I began to lean into his strong body. I had to stop myself before I went too far. This wasn't the sort of place where we did that and I wasn't the kind of girl who did either. For a second I thought I had gone too far but I pushed that back and continued to think about the look on his face after our lips met. His eyes burned with hunger, but he also look shocked, as if I was about to scold him for it and I felt his excitement against my leg. I almost giggled in a very unprofessional manner but stopped as I saw Bill walking towards me.

"Fantastic Sookie, I don't know how you do it, but you definitely deserve to go home." He handed me a towel and I quickly rubbed it along my forehead, it was covered in a thin layer of sweat from wearing the hot wig. Though I had to convince myself it wasn't because of the hot warrior of a man I was just grinding up against.

"Thanks Bill, I really do need to get going now though." I glanced at the clock hanging on the wall as lifted my hands to take out some of the pins that held my wig in place. "I don't want to be falling asleep on the boss mans desk tomorrow morning."

Bill smiled softly at me and reached over towards my face. His eyes flickered down and for a second I felt uncomfortable with him looking at me in that way. He was getting too personal for my liking. He pulled back and I let out a breath of air I was keeping. Why was he getting like this all of a sudden? I always knew he had a soft spot but was this because I might be leaving, that he was finally trying to make a move? My thoughts stopped when he held up his hand in front of him, revealing a blue tie.

"What's this?" He asked, eyebrows raised slightly.

I blushed and all of a sudden that smile returned to my face. "Oh." I paused for a second. Worried the gentleman who that tie belongs too might be missing it. "The guy I did a lap dance for, I took it off of him, I meant to give it back. I'll go and find him." I really didn't want to stay any longer, I could feel my eye lids getting heavy and I still had to drive home.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure he'll be back, you can give it to him then." I sighed with relief and pulled off the short black wig. Letting my tied back blonde hair finally free, I instantly felt cooler.

"Thanks Bill."

"Plus," He raised it over my head and placed it back where he found it, wrapped around my neck. "I'm sure it looks better on you than him. It matches your eyes." I smiled politely and thought about the blonde man's eyes. They matched the tie as well. "Now go, before someone else can stop you." I thanked him one last time and ran down the stairs to the normal backstage area and began to grab my stuff. I didn't bother taking the rest of my make-up off and just threw my jeans and sweater on over my bikini. I paused for a moment and considered taking the tie off, shaking my head I left it around my neck and headed to the door.

One step away from freedom I heard my name being called out for the hundredth time that evening. I turned to see Sam's warm smile, his red messy hair was glowing and his jeans and open white shirt added to his wholesome 'take him home to meet your parents' look.

"Hey Sam, I'm just on my way home so make it quick or I might just fall asleep in the parking lot." I joked but it seemed more and more likely to come true in the next ten minutes.

"Okay, I won't keep you none." Sam told me, his southern manners were always present. "Just wanted to give you your tips for this evening."

He handed me over a small rolled up wad of bills, held tight with an elastic band. I could feel my eyes widen. I took the bills and flicked through the corners, there was nearly three hundred dollars there. "Sam, this is too much!"

He just shrugged and ran a hand over his stubbly jaw. "Well after that job you did on that man of stone out there I'm shocked someone didn't try and buy the whole place!" I blushed furiously, it was silly of me but I really didn't like Sam or anyone I knew closely seeing me do lap dances. The stage dancing was fine, it was nothing more than what you might see on a night out and I really enjoyed it. But the lap dancing was personal, even if it doesn't mean anything. Though I couldn't help feeling that the dance tonight meant a lot more to me than it should have. Sam placed his hand on my shoulder and tore me away from my thoughts. "If anyone tries to kiss you or touch you like that again then just call me or one of the guys over, right away. You understand, chere?"

I gave Sam a hug and thanked him. "It was okay, he just turned his head at the wrong moment. It was a complete accident. I swear. You should have seen the look on his face right after." I said, trying to convince myself of that fact too.

Sam took a deep breath in, I saw his chest puff up in the process. "Oh, I saw a lot on his face." I wasn't quite sure what that meant but I was too tired to care.

"Night Sam." I kissed him lightly on the cheek like I had tried to do earlier with my blonde warrior. I cursed myself at calling him that. Blonde warrior? What was I thinking? I would never see that man again and even if I did it would be when I was Raven. He probably wasn't thinking about me the way I was thinking about him.

"Night Sookie. Be safe and text me when you get home so I know you're safe!" I smiled at him and gave a small wave. He always said that to me and I always promised to text him back. We both knew I would fall asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow and never got round to texting him. We both knew he would ring me in the morning and yell at me, then I would say sorry and promise him a hug the next time I saw him and to text him next time. Which I never did. It was a strange little routine we had.

"Tell everyone I said bye!" And with that I was out the door and heading to my car. I turned the corner and saw a gorgeous red Corvette in the parking lot. My jaw dropped and I raised my eyebrow as I tried to sneak a look at who was driving it. I could only see the passenger's side and caught a glimpse of the blonde woman from earlier, she was looking down at what I assumed was her phone but she moved her head and saw me standing at the side of the building. It was only for a second and she didn't recognise me, the only pro of wearing such an uncomfortable wig.

The car soon pulled off and I ran quickly over to my car and settled into the driver's seat before turning on the engine and heading home. My head hit the pillow and I was dreaming. Maybe working later than expected was a good thing, at least I wasn't awake half the night panicking about my interview. Instead I was just snuggling up to my extra pillow and thinking of a blonde Viking man, sweeping my off my feet, my mind skipping over the last photo I wanted to put in my portfolio.

X

I got up early on Tuesday morning, I listened to the first song on my clock radio, it was Lady GaGa and though I didn't really keep up with pop music it was quite easy to sing along to with its repetitive lyrics and catchy tune. I continued to sing along to the song whilst showering, humming over the bits I didn't know the words to. It helped me wake up and get myself in a good mood for an interview. To quote the song, I'll get them hot and show them what I got. Smiling to myself I grabbed the clothes I had laid out the day before for the day. It was a normal pin striped skirt that went just over the knee, I had a light blue blouse that tucked quite nicely into the top of the skirt and matched my eyes as well. I looked at myself in the mirror and frowned slightly. It was missing something. I swore and opened my wardrobe, I pulled a box from the bottom and began looking for a belt, something to separate the outfit a bit.

I grabbed a thick black one. Shaking my head, "Nope."

A thin black one? "No."

A brown one? I paused. "God no!"

A white soft leather one? Where did I get that from? I let out a frustrated growl. I stood up and was tempted to call Tara, the woman was a fashion goddess. Actually any of the woman I worked with would have a much better collection of accessories. I glanced at the clock, it was only 7.40. None of them would be near waking up. I stood up and placed my hands on my hips. Maybe I should just leave it? I looked at the mirror again and sighed at my curvy hips. No, I definitely needed something to take a bit of focus off those. Just then my eyes caught a bit of soft blue silk hanging off the back of a chair in the corner of my room. I walked over to it slowly, not completely sure what it was. I pulled it out from my bag and smiled at the memory of the hunk of a man from last night. I tied it around my waist and smiled at the new look. Perfect. Thank you Mr Blonde and Gorgeous, whoever and wherever you are.

Now that my major fashion emergency was fixed, I began putting some makeup on, only small amounts, just enough to make everything look a little bit fresher and smoother. I wear enough in the evenings so I tend to tone it down during the day otherwise I feel more like Raven and less like Sookie in public and that is never a good thing. I flicked through my portfolio once making sure everything was in its right place. Finally I was happy that everything was perfect, I headed out my room and downstairs into the kitchen. I made myself some coffee as I had a little while to spare before I had to leave. I opened the back door to my small house and looked out onto the little garden I had. The fresh morning air did wonders to my mind and I couldn't help but smile in the soft, warm morning sun. When the scent of coffee filled my kitchen I shut the door behind me and poured myself a cup, adding a lot of milk and nearly half the cup with sugar. I never really like the taste of coffee but I certainly liked the kick it gave me once I finished a cup. I sat down at the table and began to go over everything I wanted to get across in my interview, it wasn't until my phone started to ring loudly that I was jolted out of my thoughts. I looked over at the small vibrating object, seeing it was an unknown mobile number on the screen. I picked it up and flipped it open.

"Hello?"

I heard a pause on the other end but waited for them to reply. "Hey, is this Sookie Stackhouse?"

"Yep, that's me. Who may I ask is calling?"

"It's Lafayette. Tara's cousin, I was just calling to see if you wanted to meet up after your interview today?" I smiled at his friendliness and looked up at the tiny clock just above my oven. It was nearly 8.20. I would have to be leaving soon.

"Oh hi!" I greeted him warmly. "That'd be great but my interview is at nine. I think it'll go on for about half an hour to an hour if it all goes well. Is that a little early to meet up?"

"Nah, that's fine. I worked late last night making up for some people who left early, I'll just take it back then. Alright, you'll probably meet in the big boss man's office. So hang around outside when you're done and I'll come down and meet you then." He sounded nice and excited to see me again.

"That sounds great. Maybe you can give me a tour."

"Oh, I'll give you all the scoop on the who's who and what not, so you can keep that fine ass of yours and see you later hooker!" This little comment made me frown slightly then I remembered that Lafayette was always a bit... eccentric.

"Yeah, see you!" He hung up and I sat looking at the phone for a minute. He wouldn't tell anyone about my current job would he? I wouldn't flat out lie if anyone asked if I was an exotic dancer, but it wasn't something I wanted spread around, and I hadn't even got the job yet.

I dumped my mug in the sink, planning to wash it up later. I grabbed my stuff and shut the door behind me. Here goes nothing. I flipped on the radio in my little car, it was a different station from the one in my bedroom and I almost laughed at the song that was playing. Poker Face by Lady GaGa. I had a feeling this song was haunting me.

X

I pulled up to the huge building, it was modern, all sparkly glass and shiny metal, but it didn't look cold, just professional. I parked around the back of the building and walked slowly around to the front. I still had fifteen minutes before the interview, it was good to be early but I didn't want to be there too early and inconvenience anyone with my presence. Walking through the main doors, I took a deep breath in, the place was stunning. There were photos of some of the fashion magazines most memorable front covers, faces like Tyra Banks and Kate Moss made me feel very small and plain when they were displayed so huge on the walls.

I smiled at the young girl behind the front desk. She was petite and had long dark hair. She was very pretty but it struck me how young she also was. "Hi, my name's Sookie Stackhouse, I have an interview today with..." I double checked the name on my confirmation letter, even though I know the whole thing word of word."Mr Northman?"

The woman smiled, flashing perfect white teeth. "Let me just have a look here for you..." She scanned over her computer screen, a look of concentration on her face and clicked something twice. The smile reappeared. "Yep, here we are. Interview for assistant photographer at nine. If you'd like to take the elevator up to 12, the top floor and someone will be there to meet you."

She pointed over to an elevator to my left. "Thank you."

"Good luck!" She called as I turned and headed to the elevator. She seemed nice, that was a good start.

As the elevator pinged to let me know it was here, I stepped in and quickly made sure my phone was on silent before popping it back in my bag. Looking in the mirrors that surrounded the inside, I checked that my hair and make-up were still okay and waited until I heard the ping sound again and the doors slid open. I put on a smile through all my nerves and hoped I wasn't shaking. Stepping out I saw a desk not too far away with a blonde woman sitting behind it, talking on the phone. I didn't hear what she said because as I stepped closer and closer to her, she quickly hung up and I watched as she looked from my shoes up to my face. She looked familiar and I was sure I must have seen her in an issue of the magazine or somewhere. She smirked and stood up, showing off her elegant pink suit.

"Well this isn't good." She said, I was taken aback and felt slightly offended by that comment. About to open my mouth and retort I realised where I knew her from. I took a sharp breath and lifted my hand to my hair, feeling my long soft blonde hair, I didn't have my wig on. Could I still be dreaming?

"Geez Louise." I muttered and the woman turned to look at a closed door not too far away before coming over to my and grabbing my wrist.

"Come on, how 'bout us girls go somewhere more private?" She asked coolly and I just nodded, still in shock. I followed her into a bathroom where she quickly locked the door behind us. "Okay, assuming I've got my facts straight, you are Sookie Stackhouse, correct?"

I was tempted to lie out of confusion and embarrassment. "Yes."

"Alright, given that I never forgot a pretty face and a pair of fuck me legs like yours, I'm going to say you also respond by another name?" I nodded. "Fantastic. Well, my name is Pam. I'm Eric's personal assistant. I make sure everything runs smoothly so he doesn't have to stress anymore than normal, and you're not making my job any easier."

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I'm just here for an interview, please don't tell Mr. Northman. What I do at my other job is just to make some money." I felt silly, pleading with this woman I didn't even know.

"Stop talking. I like you, and Eric likes your work. You have a good chance at getting this job, we just need to make sure he doesn't recognise you."

I was even more confused than before. "Who?"

The woman glared at me slightly. "Eric Northman. The man you had in the palm of your hand last night when you practically ground the fuck out of him on stage." Even though she sounded angry, she was smiling which just worried me even more. Was Mr. Blonde and Gorgeous actually Eric Northman? The man I was about to have a life changing interview with?

"Shut the fuck up." I ran a hand through my hair. "Fuck." I may as well go home. He wasn't going to take my work seriously, one look and he'll recognise me and laugh me out of the building. "Fuck!"

"Listen, honey. First things first, Eric is a man. Without that black wig, he probably won't realise Hot and Sexy Raven is actually Little Miss Blonde and Innocent. From what I saw, he spent more time eye fucking your body, not looking at your face, no offence." Wow, this woman was frank.

I blushed furiously when what she said finally sunk in after the shock. "None taken." That made me feel a bit better about my impending doom.

"Second, lose that tie as a belt. It practically screamed to me when I saw it, dead giveaway and unless you actually want him to ravish you against his desk when he realises you are the woman from last night, I'd take it off." My mind then took that perfect moment to wonder off, thinking of that tall blonde man pushing me down, his body pressed against mine... maybe that wasn't such a bad idea...

My head soon snapped back when I felt Pam undoing the tie from around my waist. I blushed again. Pam shoved the tie into my hand and I placed it in my bag. "Oh God. What if he knows it's me?"I wanted to hit my head against the wall. If only I left when I was supposed to, I never would have met Eric Northman, I never would have given him a lap dance and I would certainly not have the memory of his lips brushing against mine, soft and smooth, a bit of his stubble brushing my chin...

"We'll get to that problem if it occurs but right now we need you to stop being super mega Raven hot and more boring librarian so he won't put two and two together." I gasped as the woman I only properly met two minutes ago, if you can call this proper, began to do up the top buttons on my blouse. "Though it is a crime to cover these up." I swore I heard her mutter under her breath but I was panicking so much, I didn't know. She took off an elastic band she had on her wrist and handed it to me. "Put up your hair." I could only nod. "Alright, did you speak to him at all last night?" I tried to think back to what was said, as far as I could remember we only said a few words to each other. Maybe I was lucky, he did seem embarrassed about last night so maybe he wouldn't recognise me, after all, I looked very different with long blonde hair and wearing clothes.

I finished sorting my hair into a high ponytail. "I only said a few words. Not much."

"Okay, that's good. Take out the ponytail, it doesn't help." I saw her look at the time on her watch and frown. "Well it's nearly time for your interview. Just smile, don't say or do anything to give yourself away and for fucks sake, don't panic. He can be a douche but it's all just to see if he can get you to crack, he doesn't mean what he says half the time."

"And the other half?" I breathed out, my panic rising.

"Oh, you're screwed."

I smiled and laughed, not sure why, the nerves were definitely getting to me. I was all of a sudden washed with appreciation for this woman. She was helping me when she barely knew me and when she really didn't need to. "Thank you, Pam." I bit my bottom lip, not quite sure what to say now.

"Don't mention it. Did I see you outside last night, you know, after?" I nodded and she placed her hand on her hip, I don't think I've ever seen a woman who could give that pose more attitude. "So, has Kennedy mentioned me?"

I smiled and couldn't help but throw my head back slightly, Kennedy was always on the prowl for a woman and Pam was just her type. I couldn't wait to tell her about this.

"I left straight after the...Um..." I paused not sure how to phrase the words, "Lap dance." I could feel, myself blush, "I will see her tomorrow though."

"Mention me." Wow, she was bold.

We both walked over to the door and Pam turned suddenly and pointed her finger at me. "Seriously, don't mention this." She pointed towards me and her. "If he finds out then we'd both be fired."

"But I don't even work here."

"Oh this is just a pleasantry, he loves your work and you have a great reference. Plus, he's actually in a good mood today and I'm pretty sure you have something to do with it." I could see myself becoming friends with this woman. She was extremely forward and vastly inappropriate but I could feel myself getting fond of her already.

"Which me?" I asked, regaining some confidence and smiling.

"Now that is a good question." She answered. She poked her head out of the bathroom first before signalling me to follow. "Good luck Miss Stackhouse. If you wouldn't mind taking a seat over in the green chairs, Mr Northman will be out in just a moment to see you." I was taken aback by her sudden change in tone and etiquette.

"Thank you." I walked out to the seats she pointed out and sat down, trying to stop my hands from shaking. It was disconcerting how out of breath I was, then I thought about how much panic and mayhem had just happened in the space of about five minutes. I pulled out a bottle of water from my bag and took a sip. I briefly looked around the lobby, the far wall was made completely of glass and I took in the lovely view outside. It looked sunny.

"Miss Stackhouse?" I turned to the voice. Pam was sitting behind her desk, like nothing had happened. "Are you working tonight?" She smirked and I couldn't help but laugh as well.

"No, Tuesday and Thursday are my nights off." I hoped I sounded casual.

"Good to know." She winked and I pressed myself further into the back of the chair. She was scary and I thought Lafayette was bad. I heard a small buzz come from Pam's desk and looked up. She picked up her phone and began talking to someone on the other end, first in English, greeting them and asking how they were, then suddenly she looked up at me and began speaking in a different language. What she was saying sounded sarcastic and slightly mean but from what I know of Pam, everything she said sounded like that. I listened closely, though had picked up my portfolio and flicked over a few pages so it didn't look like I was eavesdropping. I couldn't pick up on many words, she was speaking quite fast and fluently but then Pam laughed and said one word. Snälla. I knew that meant please in Swedish. Thank you Ikea! I couldn't make out another word before she hung up the phone.

It struck me that in less than five minutes I would be shaking hands with and sitting across a desk with my man from last night. My pulse sped up and I felt heat rise in my cheeks. No, he's not my man, I scolded myself. God, give me strength to get through this, even if he didn't know it was me, what was to stop me from acting like a shy teenage with a crush on her high school teacher? I shook my head. I started to talk myself down. Okay, you know how hot this man is, so you won't be besieged by his good looks and fantastic body. Besieged, it was a word on my word of the day calendar last week and I was proud I had managed to use it a sentence, I just hope I used it in the right context. Anyway, you can stay focused on your work, ignore the way his deep eyes will look at you and scrutinise your work, come on Sookie, you can do this, just put on a poker face. I smiled at the idea of me acting like Lady GaGa, then it struck me that that's what I need to do. Just wear a poker face, smile your way through and he won't notice anything out of the ordinary. When I was Raven, I put on a poker face and that's just what I had to do now. I can do this. I can do this! Pretend to be normal. No secret night life dancing for strangers. I would just be normal Sookie. The girl I always wished I could be and the woman I would become once I had this job. Pumping myself up, I felt much better and closing my portfolio, I looked up and smiled. I was often told I had a beautiful smile so I would just smile when my mind screamed for me to panic. I finally felt confident to go in there, head held high no matter what.

Smoothing out my hair, I heard a small buzzer and Pam called out my name. I looked over and she stood up, so did I. "Miss Stackhouse, would you care to follow me?" And so I did, through a door, down a corridor with a huge set of double doors at the end, it was obviously the manager's office, I felt intimidated enough just looking at it. I wondered why Pam was coming with me but quickly cottoned on to her being there to see if Mr Northman recognised who I was. I sighed, all I had to do was get through this interview, get the job and then he can't fire me without a valid reason, and being an exotic dancer in a previous job was not a reason to dismiss anyone. Sweeping my hair over my shoulders, I took a deep breath in when Pam knocked lightly on the door and I heard a deep voice calling out to come in.

Pam flashed me a smile, or a smirk, I couldn't tell and my mind was busy praying. Pam stepped through the door first and I slid in behind her.

"Hello Eric. This is Miss Sookie Stackhouse." She moved over to the side and I was in full view of Eric and he of me.

Mr Northman stood up from his seat and walked around, he hadn't raised his head to look at me yet and I would have found this incredibly rude if it was for the fact my mind was currently crying out how gorgeous this man was. He was dressed in a grey suit and a black shirt, the collar was open and as he stood up, I could almost feel every muscle under that shirt flex. As he walked around his desk, he glared at Pam and I noticed how tall he was, even in my heels, his broad shoulders looked amazing in that suit and his long hair was tied in a neat ponytail. This man was a hunk. A Viking of a man. I nearly lost my poker face right then but continued to smile, my lips straining over my teeth, I must look crazy. In the bright room I could see his hair was a similar shade of blonde, if not that same, as mine.

"Thank you Pam, though I do not understand why you had to introduce her yourself." His eyebrow was slightly raised at her and all my confidence drained when he turned to face me. His deep blue eyes pierced mine just like they had last night as he breathed out a single word that stopped my heart dead. "Raven."

Oh fudge.

X

Hi there, first I would like to thank you all for reading my story. If you like it, want to tell me how you feel about what I'm doing, any suggestions are welcome and please please please let me know if I have made any mistakes, spelling or grammar or continuity wise. I really appreciate all of them and will try and get back to all of you. Also I love reviews, like a vampire loves fairy blood ;-D

Well I hoped you enjoyed it and I promise the next chapter won't take as long to update, I already have half of it written and yes, it is the interview!

Thank you all!


	4. Wicked Game

Hello everyone, I would like to start off by saying thank you to everyone for reading, author and story alerting me and reviewing my story, I love you all and you are all amazing! Okay so, here's where I get serious. I'm going to say sorry now, I know I lead a lot of you on, I played with your feelings and I know that can hurt. But please don't yell at me until the end of this chapter!

Thanks again for reading and I've got a special thank you to Karin, you know why, you are amazing and I really hope I don't disappoint you with this chapter. I hope you enjoy it!

ILoveVikings – Thank you for your review of each chapter, I'm glad you're enjoying it so far!

Axadams – That's a great idea, but you'll have to wait and see, who knows maybe that's what I'm planning to do...

KristinWest – Thank you! Hope this chapter doesn't change your mind!

ShellCat – Thanks again for the review, I hope I don't disappoint you.

LB123 – Hey, I'm glad you understood why Pam did what she did, I never know if I'm writing her right or not. She's very tricky! I'm glad I surprised you, and a few others by the looks of things, hopefully they'll be a few more in store for you!

Outinritefield1 – Thanks for the awesome review. And who knows... maybe you're right...

IamAbbiNormal – Hi, thanks for the review (Loved the Batman reference btw.) And who said that all of Pam's effort didn't pay off...

Ericsgirl1 – Hey, I hate it when people right Sookie self-righteous and naive too, hopefully I'm not making her like that in this fic, but please tell if I do! I don't think that's going to be an issue in this chapter but the next is Sookie's pov and I'm struggling a bit.

Trixie09 – Hi, thanks for mentioning my little mistake, someone else noticed and as soon as I have time, I'm going to fix it. Please let me know if you notice anything else! I really do appreciate it.

Cate8899 – Thanks for reviewing each chapter, I know what you mean, I have no willpower when it comes to Alexander-I mean-Eric either, but who can blame me? Why are there no half naked vampires with no memory running outside my house... anyway, enjoy this chapter!

Foreveraddicted – Thanks for the review, mysteries are good, so is sexual tension, so I ask, why can't we have both?

Gjers-1 – I'm afraid I may just have to disappoint you... Please don't hate me for it! Thanks for the review!

Alisainwonderland – thanks for the awesome review, I'm glad Sookie doesn't sound forced and you enjoy reading it, Pam is great to write, tho I am having trouble with Lafayette and Sookie in the next chapter. Sorry if this chapters lets you down but I hope you enjoy it!

Missus T – I glad you enjoyed the last bit, I was tempted to take it a different way and not finish the chapter there but it just felt like a perfect moment. This chapter is a little longer, and I hope you like what I've done with it.

Blood And Fangs27, frlarsson, blueiris, ncvampfan, moondancer7825, kitlina, Amethyst144, KatrinaP, KiraKiralina, Baronessjai, Princess A-ya 101, Patito, Vane3131, Orionsbabydoll, OldAsDirt, lilabitblf, ariesgirl1982, Kassey4221, Remusgrl01, kpkisses, Aerynzu, SookieEricLover, bebeschtroumph, stephaniesmeow, Vamp Winter, gracie2thumbs, pinkygirl01, JRad, CeeCee01 – Thank you all for your amazing reviews! I really do love and appreciate every single one. I hope I haven't missed anyone but you are all awesome and I don't think I would have continued with this story if it wasn't for all of you! I really hope you all enjoy this chapter!

X

Mistaken Identity

Chapter Four – Wicked Game.

X

"Oh Eric!" The beautiful soft voice moaned in that sweet southern accent and I couldn't help but capture the lips that said those words. I felt her hips buck up into mine and she ground herself against me. I assumed she got the reaction she wanted because when a growl escaped my throat, she laughed and threw her head back, giving me perfect access to her neck. Quickly sinking my teeth into her tanned flesh, I heard her cry out as I began to suck and mark her as my own.

"Stop it Eric, you'll leave a love bite."

I stopped and lifted my head to gaze into her eyes. They were lust filled and I could feel the air coming in and out of her mouth in deep ragged breaths, hot and moist against my lips.

"You love it," I said, my voice low and husky. I loved how she gasped as I bent back down and continued to nip and suck.

I felt her hands tangle in my hair and she lifted my head away from her neck and pulled me up to her lips. She bit my bottom lip lightly and I opened my mouth to let her tongue meet mine. I would have given her anything if she'd asked, but what shocked me was that all she ever wanted was me. Just me. I closed my eyes and relished the feel of her body pulled against me and her lips battling with mine, but they quickly snapped open when I noticed her hand left my hair and was now working its way down my chest to my trousers. She opened them and slipped her hand delicately into my underwear. With a sudden burst of I don't know what, I turned her around and pushed her down onto my desk. She let out a cry of delight and it was my time to grind. I pushed my cock into her hand, smiling down wickedly at her. I saw her legs opening to give me room to move in between them. She removed her hand from my pants and I instantly missed her petite soft, warm hand, but only for a moment until I watched her use her now free hand to slip off her underwear and throw it behind my desk. I thanked God for whoever made the skirt as I leaned down over her, pushing my painfully fantastic erection against her core. I held my body over hers for a second and carefully and tenderly gave her a kiss and pulled back. The lust in her gaze was still there, but now I saw something that made my heart swell. She sat up slightly and returned the kiss, the love evident in her eyes.

"Thank you." I told her.

Her hand was now stroking my jaw. "For what?" She looked at me confused.

"For saving me." I could feel something build up deep inside, it was as strong as the passion and lust I was feeling for her.

She smiled up at me. I pulled her up to me, my hand on the back of her neck holding her to me like I might lose her if I let go. I felt her hand slip back into my trousers, giving me all the permission I needed. When my cock was freed, she lowered herself back onto my desk, letting me see her perfect body, even if it was still mostly clothed. I took a moment to admire her curves before leaning over her again. I kissed her soft lips once more before pushing myself deep into her. I heard her cry out my name as pumped into her. We moved together for what seemed like eternity, but not long enough. She continued to moan my name and gasp when I did something she enjoyed. Her hands were on my arms and loved the feel of her gripping me like she was about to fall to her death if she let go.

Her legs began to shake and quiver and I felt her walls begin to tighten around me inside her, I reached up and grabbed a fistful of her black hair and came. I took one of her free hands in mine as we both panted heavily, laying on my desk. I couldn't have been happier. I didn't move an inch for a while after. I just held her hand, whispering, "I love you Raven. I love you," over and over again.

"Fuck..."

I shook my head. I needed to get this woman out of my head. Resting my head in my hands, I thought about her. I'd only met her once and here I was sitting in my office day dreaming about having passionate sex with her and admitting I loved her. I felt like a teenage boy. The worst thing was, I felt happy; like I was making some progress in getting over Kate with this random girl who I was never going to see again. Even if that was the case, why couldn't it be with someone that I actually stood a chance with instead of a dancer in a club who was paid to flirt with me? Was I really that self-destructive?

I shifted in my desk chair, my hard-on straining in my pants. I looked up at the computer screen to check my agenda for the day, even though I had known it for weeks. My first interview was at 9:00 with a Miss Sookie Stackhouse. It was booked for two hours, one for the interview and one for the tour. The tour was some shitty idea the HR people had come up with. Apparently, if a new employee was given a tour from a member of management, it increased positive feelings of starting in a new work place by 82% or some bull that they made up. I then had a meeting with the Sophie-Anne at 10:30 to discuss some fashion project she was coming up with. I sighed. The only reason I put up with that crazy woman was because some pretty rich and famous people liked her clothes, which meant the magazine got interviews and photos of said celebrities at fashion shows like the one she was planning and that sold magazines.

I looked in the corner of my screen and saw it was getting close to 9:00. I picked up my phone and put it to my ear, about to hit the button to call Pam at the front desk when I put it down, stopping myself. I needed a little walk to get the blood flowing somewhere... else. I stood up, tidied my desk quickly, and walked down the corridor that led towards the foyer. I straightened my suit, feeling slightly self conscience that I didn't wear a tie today, but I felt slightly more relaxed this morning when getting dressed. Not to mention, I had the image of Raven wearing my tie around her neck. I liked to think I had self-control, but wearing a tie all day may be pushing my limits.

Opening the door, I instantly turned and looked for Pam only to see she wasn't there. I looked around the foyer, then walked over to her desk and looked to see if there was a note or any obvious reason she wasn't where she was supposed to be. Not finding anything, I turned and headed back to my office. Weird. I'd have to ask her about that when she got back. I frowned that there was no sign of Miss Stackhouse either. She still had a bit of time before the interview, but I preferred people to be early.

I returned to my office and walked back to my desk, deciding to give Pam and Miss Stackhouse two minutes before ringing the front desk. I opened up the internet on my computer and dragged my cursor to the address bar, pondering over what to do for a few minutes. I knew it was shameful, but I went to Google and typed in 'Club Area 6 Raven'. I came to a dead end. There was a lot of information on the club's official website, but not any of the dancers. I knew it was pointless, but it made me feel slightly better that at least I was trying to be productive in maybe seeing this girl again... perhaps. I closed the screen and was about to run a hand through my hair when I remembered I had tied it back today.

I picked up the phone and pressed the little button that used to have a symbol on it, but I'd pressed it so many times it had faded.

"Pam, nice to see you've decided to take time out of your busy schedule to do your job."

Pam then asked if we could continue the conversation in Swedish. I agreed, but suddenly became skeptical.

"What is it Pam?"

"I think you should hire this woman."

"Is that really your decision?" I laughed slightly.

They say that behind every great man was an even better woman and unfortunately that was true when it came to me and Pam, though I didn't really see her as a woman; she always acted like one of the guys.

"True, but I thought we agreed that I make all of your decisions about women from now on, and this woman is smoking hot."

I rolled my eyes, and I was pretty sure she was doing the same thing on the other end. I thought back to the night Pam crashed my apartment with a six-pack of beer. We watched some rubbish super hero movie and argued about me cramping her style when we went out. It was then that she came up with that idea.

"I think you'll find I didn't agree to that."

"Yes, but we had that previous agreement that all disagreements automatically end with my vote."

"That was your idea, not mine."

"Exactly." She had twisted logic, if you can call that logic.

"Why am I speaking like this anyway? I'm assuming it's because Miss Stackhouse is waiting there with you, but I'm alone in my office."

Why was Pam making a big deal about this woman? Usually she waited until the interview was over and said person had left before announcing a new conquest and demanding I hire them.

"I love your good mood today Eric, it's been a while since I've seen you so carefree . . ."

"Oh I have a million things to worry about."

I was a bit shocked she had noticed my good mood. I'd only seen her for about a minute when I came in this morning and she gave me a coffee.

"Exactly. Usually you're worried about a million and one things."

"Pam . . ." I smirked down the line.

"Eric, I love you. Please hire this woman. I think she'll be a fantastic asset to this... company."

"You fancy her don't you?"

"I can see what all the fuss is about, but it's not me I'm thinking of right now."

I cocked an eyebrow at that comment. Who was she thinking about? Could Pam, the woman who I had thought on more than one occasion was sent from the government to ruin me, really be thinking about the good of the company? If Pam was being serious for once, then I decided to reward her and agree.

"Okay. Well, I like what I've seen already, so she's already halfway there and, if she's charmed the pants off you in less than ten minutes, then I'm sure I'll be impressed." She must be a 9, if not a 10, on the fuckable scale.

"Fantastic," she said in a sarcastic voice. I wasn't sure if she was serious or not. "Oh and Eric?"

"Yes? It's nearly nine..." I hated running late.

"Please behave yourself. Please don't do anything stupid, aggressive or whiney. Please."

"Pam, shut the fuck up and just bring her in here okay?"

"Fuck you. I'll take my sweet time now. I might just want to keep staring at this drop dead gorgeous woman for the next half hour and make you late for your meeting with Lady Wench." And with that statement, she hung up the phone.

I shook my head, but couldn't help the smile that formed on my face at our nickname for Sophie-Anne. I wanted to call her bluff, but after two minutes I gave in and hit the buzzer on the phone, hoping it would show her I gave in.

A minute later, I heard footsteps and the door opened. I looked up and saw Pam walk in. I shot her a confused look. She briefly introduced Miss Sookie Stackhouse. Standing up and straightening my suit jacket, even though I knew it was winkle free, I moved around the side of my desk and took a step forward towards Pam. I saw a woman standing behind her. She was a good bit shorter than Pam, so she must be about a foot shorter than me. I looked at Pam, wondering why she was still here - probably to prove a point.

"Thank you Pam, though I don't understand why you had to introduce her yourself."

I wasn't sure what that point was until I looked at Miss Sookie Stackhouse herself. She had on a pair of comfortable yet stylish black heels that made her legs look stunningly toned. She wasn't wearing tights and I could see her legs were quite tanned. Her pin striped skirt was tight in all the right places, hugging her curves. Tucked into the top, was a nice blouse, though I thought it was buttoned up a bit too high to match the tone of the rest of her outfit. Her light blonde hair was flowing freely in soft waves over her shoulders. I finally looked up into her eyes, having spent a bit too long checking out what she was wearing. Her eyes stopped me dead. They were soft blue and wide. The same colour as mine. The same colour as Raven's. I was about to say something stupid, but caught myself, though not before whispering Raven's name.

I scolded myself mentally, feeling almost frozen in time. I heard Pam gasp and I was sure she would now have something to gloat about. I can't believe I let myself get caught saying her name, even more so with Pam standing next to me. I did a double take of this Sookie Stackhouse and shook my head. She just had blue eyes, like lots of people. Man the fuck up and get over yourself, Eric. I saw Pam in the corner of my eye. She looked ready to move. I just wasn't sure if she wanted to jump on me and Sookie or run away. Strange, I'd have to ask her about that later.

"Hi Miss Stackhouse. I'm Eric Northman, head of Leif magazine. How are you?"

She looked a little lost for words, but I just put that down to nerves. Her eyes were wide and her mouth opened in a stunned like manner. Maybe it wasn't nerves. I felt self conscious and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. Could it possibly be me that was causing this reaction? I looked down at my grey suit and open black shirt. Pam and Alcide always said I was handsome. Hell, I knew I used to be good looking and, on more than one occasion, I had made a woman weak at the knees with just a look, but then that cold-blooded ice queen came into my life, stealing my heart and all my confidence. I suddenly felt angry at the thought of Kate. She ruined me. I was damaged goods. I looked down at this good looking woman with soft features and a gorgeous smile. No, it was probably just nerves.

I raised my hand to shake hers, which she gladly took. Her small hands were soft, yet strong. She instantly gained some respect from me. I hated women who just placed their hand into someone's when greeting like a dead fish.

"Hi Mr Northman. Please, call my Sookie. I'm very well, yourself?"

She had a soft southern accent, but it had lost some of its edge. I suppose from living far away from the south for a few years had done that.

"I'm also very well. Please, come take a seat." I motioned to the seat closest to us by the desk.

As she thanked me and passed to take the seat, I looked over at Pam one last time, silently asking her what she wanted. She just smirked.

"Thank you, Pam, that will be all." I mouthed 'fuck off' to her.

She just rolled her eyes before turning on her heel and leaving, slightly slamming the door as she did so. I shook my head and walked back to my side of the desk.

"Sorry about Pam. She can be a bit standoffish, but she is extremely loyal."

Sookie smiled politely up at me. She was seated on the edge of the chair and I was standing by mine. She looked so tiny, her eyes wide and innocent. I suddenly realised how silly I was being when I thought her eyes were similar to Raven's. This young woman looked like a deer caught in headlights, naive and fragile. Raven was strong and confident. Her eyes were full of mystery and desire. They were nothing alike.

"She seemed nice."

Miss Stackhouse had laid her folder on the desk, which I assumed had some more prints of her photos in it. I sighed and sat down. I had already made up my mind about this woman's work. She had skills and could naturally capture a scene with a lot of intensity and emotion. She was gifted and if I could hire her purely for her photos I would, but she needed to be able to cope and hold her own in this fast paced world of money and fashion. Lafayette's description had made her sound more strong willed than the woman who was sat in front of me. I stared at her for a moment, waiting to see how she would react to my daring gaze. She held her ground and only shifted her weight once. She looked straight back into my eyes, not too cocky but not shy. Maybe I misjudged her.

"Actually Pam was kind enough to tell me a bit about you."

Well now, that was something new. I blinked, tilting my head to the side.

"Really? And what would that be?"

"She said not to be put off by your scrutiny and that it's all just to see if I would crack. Mr Northman, I'm sure you are a very busy man-"

I cut her off, "Yes, Miss Stackhouse," I decided against calling her by her first name, "I am a busy man, but now you have me at a disadvantage. Pam has told you about me and my interview technique, but I am left here knowing nothing about you."

She nodded and recovered from my comment quickly. "That is unfortunate, though I'm sure that was not her intention. Let me cover the basics."

I smiled, encouraging her to go on.

"I grew up in Louisiana. I didn't go to college-"

I held up a hand, "I don't need to know your life story. Let me guess, you've loved photography ever since you were a child. It's been your dream. This means so much to you. You want it more than anyone else. I don't really care. Why should I hire someone with no experience and no education?"

I saw her eyes glance down to her hands, which were curled up in her lap.

"Actually, no, Mr Northman. I never even thought about photography when I was growing up. The first time I picked up a decent camera was when I was seventeen. I have no education because I had to leave school to get a job to support my family. I understand your reservations in hiring someone without a degree, but if you took a moment to look at my work, I'm sure you would see I have a great passion and natural talent which reflect in my photos."

She pushed her portfolio my way and I picked it up with one hand, resting it in my lap.

"I'm sure some people come in here and wave a hundred thousand dollar education at you, but I have life experience; something that gives me a different and unique outlook on things."

I looked through her photos. She was right. She was good. I'd only seen a couple stills before today, but all of these were fantastic. One in particular caught my attention more than any other. It was of a make-up desk covered in fake heads with wigs and make-up. It looked like it had been taken backstage at a fashion show and I could almost see it as a front cover of a story.

"I understand and respect that Miss Stackhouse, but how am I to trust you at a fashion show for a client? How do I know you won't get overwhelmed in a situation like that?"

We then got into a long discussion about customer service and all the experience she had in that. It was heated, but in a passionate and knowledgeable way, sharing common thoughts and opinions. She knew what she was talking about, and the way her eyes lit up when we talked about professionalism was just amazing. I could see me working closely with her at shows and not getting bored or annoyed with her. I often found people to become insufferable and frustrating after spending too much time with them and I didn't think she would be. She was right - her life experience made her smart and sharp-witted. I made up my mind about her then. Now it was time for the real questions.

"Are you familiar with Sophie-Anne LeClerq's work?"

Miss Stackhouse shot me a strange look. "Of course."

She was right to look at me strangely. That was a silly question. Everyone who had contact with the outside world and the media knew who Sophie-Anne was.

"Right. What do you think of her work? And please be aware that I will know if you lie."

She visibly gulped and took a moment to formulate an answer.

Good girl. This woman was smart.

She bit her bottom lip as she considered how to word whatever she was going to say and I couldn't help but look at her again. She really was stunning. Her long wavy blonde hair shone and looked soft to touch. Her make-up was light and only highlighted her perfect eyes and lips. Her cheekbones were high but didn't stand out and make her face look angular. I could see why Pam liked her. My eyes trailed down her neck. It was long and looked so smooth, leading down to her perky breasts . . . I had to swallow some extra saliva that had gathered in my mouth. What was wrong with me today? One lap dance and I'm as horny as a teenager.

"Honestly?"

I smirked and nodded.

"It's over rated. It's not original, but she gets away with claiming ideas from unknown designers because of the hundreds of celebrities that follow her. I love the shows she does, gothic and dark, yet sweet and cute. It's a statement everyone can relate to, and the creations she makes photograph is so many different way, but . . ."

I wondered how she could relate to the dark but sweet aspect of Sophie-Anne's work. She looked up at me, seeing if my face gave anything away. I stayed perfectly still, though I wondered if she could see the excitement in my eyes. I hoped not, mainly as I wasn't sure if I was so eager because she agreed with my views of Sophie-Anne or because I was imagining the feel of her hair gripped in my fist as I sucked on her neck. She interrupted my thoughts before my mind went too far.

"But, she seems as crazy as a pet squirrel."

Her southern accent seemed to creep up in that saying and I couldn't help but laugh with her. Her face lit up and her smile was broad showing off her perfect teeth. She looked stunning. After I managed to stop laughing at that comment, mostly because it was very accurate and also because I wasn't expecting it, I looked over at Miss Stackhouse and nodded.

"I agree."

I turned serious again, pulling any sign of my little outburst of laughter off my face and out of my mind.

"But she is popular. She provides us with great opportunities. For example, she is setting up a new show for next month and we are going to be covering it. I expect you to be able to work with her and her team, follow orders and respect her, along with everyone else you work with."

She had switched back to serious mode as well and I was glad to see she could do that quickly and appropriately.

"Certainly."

I smiled and noticed how her eyes traveled down to my mouth. Her jaw slackened slightly and her gaze wandered slightly lower before I shifted uncomfortably. I should have worn a tie.

"Now, talk me though some of your photos."

I pushed her portfolio towards her and she flipped open the first page.

"Okay, well this is a personal favourite of mine. As you can see, I used completely natural light in this photo for several reasons..."

She went on for a minute or so explaining the many reasons she decided to take this photo the way she did before turning the page a couple of times to find another photo and talk her way through it. I spotted one photo and held up my hand up to pause her before she turned the page again. It was of a river, all overgrown, dark, and sinister, even though it was a sunny day. There was a young man with a pair of ripped blue jeans on standing nearby. It looked like an ad I would have run except for the harshness of the river. I traced the water with a lazy finger and I heard a slight gasp escape her mouth.

"Why did you decide to go in this direction?"

I looked up and saw a flash of sadness in her soft blue eyes. She looked at the photo I had chosen for a second too long before looking up and locking her gaze to mine.

"This photo has a more personal history than a fashion angle. It was taken to show the grief a child feels about a tragic, but unavoidable loss, and how that left behind child wishes their loved ones could see them grown up."

I tore my fixed eyes off of hers and looked back down at the photo. I could completely see what she was trying to say. I began to wonder who this gentleman was, but she interrupted my thoughts.

"It's also about the shadows that follow us as we walk through life. The shadows of losing a loved one and how that affects the choices we make while also asking would that loved one accept us even with the shadows of mistakes we now carry as adults."

"And what shadows follow you Miss Stackhouse?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

She looked a little taken aback, but I couldn't help asking. She looked sad, yet wise. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, struggling to find an answer before I stopped her.

"I am truly sorry. That was inappropriate of me."

"No, it's okay. We all have shadows."

She was right. Kate still lingered in the back of my mind everyday, always reminding me of what I couldn't have. Miss Stackhouse smiled kindly up at me and I frowned, resentment flaring up inside. Did she pity me?

"Yes, but how do you use yours? All great artists use their weaknesses as strengths and all I've seen here are things I've seen a million times before. They lack any real emotion on your part and I want to see something more intimate about you."

I knew I was being harsh the second the words left my mouth. Honestly, these photos were fantastic. They showed other people's stories and not hers, which is why I liked them so much in the first place. So why was I now asking her now to do something different? She looked stunned and I smacked myself mentally for my sudden change of mood. I sighed. Maybe it was just because I wanted to see something more to do with her? She seemed like she had a great albeit sad story to tell and I was curious.

"Are there any photos here which tell me about you? Any self portraits?"

She nodded. I was happy she kept her cool even after I nearly yelled at her for no reason, insulting her life's work.

"I keep them towards the back."

She flicked over the pages until she reached the back of the folder. I saw a couple of pages with personal photos on them and grabbed her hand when she turned a page with a photo of her and the same blond haired man in the riverside photo. He was standing behind her, shirtless again, and she had her arms wrapped around the man's neck behind her. I wasn't sure why I was slightly annoyed by that. His head was resting on top of his hands, which were on top of her head. They were both smiling and Miss Stackhouse was almost rolling her eyes. It was sweet and cute, and they were obviously in love. I felt a spark of jealousy fly through me. I had a moment to ponder if I was envious of them both for having an obvious loving relationship or just of the man for having such an obviously loving relationship with this stunning, intelligent woman. Pushing the resentment down, I wanted to blame the sexy dancer from last night for unearthing all these feelings of loneliness.

"This photo, can you elucidate? Why... er...the sudden change in style?"

"Um, this is my brother. He was always complaining that he never had a family photo, that I hid behind the camera as an excuse not to have my photo taken."

I was oddly relieved by this comment. Her accent had become slightly more southern at the memory of home. I could see this relationship now, the cheeky fun between the two. They were close, but not in love.

"So, I did this as a present. We took around a hundred photos, but this one was my favourite. I think it showed not only the relationship we have, him being my older brother, resting on my head, but also what kind of relationship we had. We never took each other too seriously, hence the soft light and shadows and the natural expressions. Nothing overly posed."

I nodded as I took a deep breath of air. I ran over her little speech again quickly in my mind. This picture was of only the two of them.

"Family photo?"

"Well, my parents died when I was a teenager. I didn't really have any close family apart from Jason, my brother, and my Gran. This was taken about three years ago. My Gran had recently died. Jason was finally growing up and when he realised it was just me and him left... well he asked about doing this."

That was overwhelmingly sad. I thought of my parents, my older brother, and younger sister; hell, I even thought of Pam as family. What would I do if I lost one of them? I felt sorry for this woman who was so alone in this world.

"I understand."

I shut the portfolio and looked Miss Stackhouse face on. She briefly looked worried, like she had shared too much, but then all of that was gone and she was professional again.

"There is a show this evening, only a small preview of a new upcoming musical. A good friend of mine is the producer. Come with me and do what you do best."

Her eyes lit up and she smiled and I couldn't help it, but the corners of my mouth lifted up too.

"Maybe it's too forward to ask, but does this mean I have the job?"

"Miss Stackhouse, I have no doubt you are a fantastic photographer. Of course I will thank Lafayette for suggesting you, but I need to trust that you can cope under the pressure of a live event, maintain a good image of Leif and our associates, and still get amazing photos like this." I tapped the folder that now lay closed on my desk.

"With your lack of experience, know I do not like taking risks. Call it a final interview. You will develop all your work and bring it in tomorrow afternoon and then I will make my decision."

Her smile grew bigger if it were at all possible. She laughed and thanked me about six times before we continued.

"Miss Stackhouse, please understand that I only want perfection for this magazine. I've worked hard to be where I am and make this company what it is. If you embarrass me or yourself this evening then I will never see or speak to you again in regards to my magazine." I was being harsh, but I had a reputation to uphold. I also had some odd satisfaction as making her squirm in her seat.

"I understand, Mr Northman." She looked anxious, maybe I was being too mean to her. Most people were used to my cruel and callous and unkind nature at work, but she was new to all of this. I liked her naivety, it was a breath of fresh air. I smiled at her, knowing that it would make me appear more human and less like a dick head.

"Please, call me Eric."

Her polite smile popped up again and I couldn't help but enjoy her pleasant southern manners, something you don't see often in LA.

"Thank you, but please call me Sookie."

I nodded, standing up ready to give her the tour. I looked up and down her body once more, enjoying the view a little more than I should have.

"Good. Now, before I show you around, there is no official dress code for tonight, but know everyone judges you by what you wear. Do you have anything appropriate?"

She nodded.

I couldn't help but imagine her in a low cut dress, showing off her figure and more of her gorgeous looking breasts.

"This will be a very exclusive crowd. Pam will give you all the details later, but you will need to do your homework. There will be people there you need to know."

She nodded again, her lips in a little pout.

We walked over to the door and paused before opening it. I was excited about tonight, but the prospect of going alone was daunting, especially as there would be people I'd rather avoid going as well. The idea of Miss Stackhouse accompanying me had been a rash decision, but one that now made perfect sense. I could test her out in a real life situation and not be forced to spend the whole night with insufferable, stuck up, rich and famous people who only wanted to talk about themselves. The only time they ever stopped talking about themselves was to ask if I was dating anyone significant and, if not, could they set me up with someone. I looked down at Sookie. She glanced at her watch and I wondered if she was meeting someone.

"You didn't have plans tonight did you?"

Was it selfish to think if she did, she should have to cancel them? No one says no to Eric Northman, unless they were an idiot.

She shook her head, "Nope, not unless you call a night in watching TV and reading a book 'plans'."

We both gave a little laugh. It sounded pathetic, but honestly that's how I spent most of my free evenings. It suddenly struck me . . . I didn't want to be single anymore. I was bored of going home to an empty apartment and microwaving a meal for one. I looked down at this pretty woman with blonde hair. She was the second woman in the past 12 hours who I was attracted to, though for completely different reasons. Sookie was an intellectual colleague, someone I could take places and talk to. I'd have been lying if I said I didn't notice how beautiful she was. Raven was a different matter. I was attracted to her in the complete opposite way; it was magnetic and physical, like an animal seeing its mate. Her body spoke to me in a primal way. It wasn't who I was interested in that dazed me, but more the fact that I was paying attention to anyone at all. It had been two years since Kate, and yet Raven and Sookie were the only women who caught my interest for longer than a minute. This was good. I was finally taking a positive step forward and I found myself eagerly anticipating tonight's show.

I opened the door for Sookie and continued our conversation.

"Excellent. Tell me, do you like Niall Brigant's work?" The look on her face was priceless.

X

Thank you all for reading, please review and let me know what you think, sorry if I let any of you down!

I'm having a bit of trouble with the next chapter, for some reason everything I write from Sookie's POV comes out feeling a bit OOC. Your reviews all mean so much to me and are a great inspiration so thank you and please review, I will hopefully have the next chapter up by the same time next week if I can get over this funk.

Thank you!


	5. Over My Head

Hey guys, I'm so sorry for not updating sooner so I'll keep this short and sweet so you can get on and read the next chapter.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed and I'm sorry I'm not going to individually thank you but I promise I will in the next chapter!

This chapter is kind of slow but it's needed so we can move forward to the next one which is why it took me so long to write it and why I'm not completely happy with it.

Well, I won't keep you all much longer just a disclaimer now...

The Southern Vampire Mysteries/True Blood/Sookie/Eric. None of these belong to me. I only like to obsess and fool around with them ;-D

This chapter is all in Sookie's POV.

X

Mistaken Identity

Chapter 1 – Dream On.

X

The second I heard him whisper my stage name, I was ready to get yelled at and leave. Instead, he shook his head as if arguing with himself before introducing himself to me. He stared into my eyes like he had last night only there was no sign of familiarity. I thanked my lucky stars. Of course he didn't recognise me! I looked completely different and he certainly wasn't expecting to see Raven here. It was just a slip of the tongue. Maybe he was thinking of me? No, not me - Raven. I smiled inwardly at the idea of me running around in his thoughts. I realised I was standing there looking like a shell-shocked idiot. I introduced myself and tried to brush off the memory of my body pressed against his.

Mr. Northman brushed a strand of his long hair behind his ear and looked down. I followed his gaze. Lord, he was gorgeous. His soft blond hair was tied back with a loose lock that was now tucked safely behind his ear. He was dressed in a grey suit and black shirt, much more casual than last night. The first couple of buttons were open and I almost shuddered remembering the feel of my hands rubbing his toned chest.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by him raising his hand. I smiled and shook it politely. Now that I had properly introduced myself, I walked over to the seat he pointed to. It took me a minute to compose myself, but I soon had my poker face on and was ready to take anything he threw at me. I felt safe in the knowledge that he didn't recognise me from last night, but he was thinking of my alter ego and, for some reason, it felt as if I had the upper hand. He thanked Pam and I jumped a little when the door slammed behind her. Mr. Northman walked around the desk and made a comment about Pam before sitting down.

The interview went very well. I felt my nerves creep up at the beginning, but I kept my cool and I stood my ground, calling his bluff in regards to Sophie-Anne's work. I knew he was impressed. He even laughed at a comment of mine, showing me his perfect straight white teeth as he did so. His laugh was rich and deep, and I almost moaned at the sound. My confidence was rising until he began to question my past, asking what shadows follow me. He quickly apologized, but I disagreed with him, not wanting to seem weak or overly emotional. He asked about personal photos and I felt self-conscious. I never really liked having my photo taken. Jason was right - I was the one taking photos so I wouldn't have any taken of myself.

My heart soared when he offered for me to come with him to the musical preview that evening. I tried to convince myself that it was because he was considering me for the job, but I couldn't help feeling it was because I would be spending the evening with him - for the second night in a row . . . not that he would be aware of that. I couldn't stop the huge smile that spread on my face. How could the other man from last night have made Mr. Northman out to be such an asshole? And then he gave me his little speech about embarrassing him tonight. I swallowed nervously. As if there wasn't enough pressure, now I knew if I did anything stupid or fucked up then I would lose my only tie to the industry. I nodded and agreed, looking up into those blue eyes and trying not to think about how they fluttered open and closed when I leaned into him the night before. I felt my face get hot at the memory of his lips brushing mine and the pleading look that followed. I shifted in my chair. This wasn't good. He suddenly changed his tone, being gentle and asking me to call him Eric. I felt a tingle work its way up my lower body. Nope, not good at all.

He stood up and I followed suit. We walked over to the door as he made small talk. I made a mental note to take Lafayette shopping and get a new dress to wear tonight. I glanced at my watch wondering what time it was. I was supposed meet Lafayette soon for a tour. I knew it was rude, but I didn't want to keep him waiting. Eric asked me if I had any plans this evening and I nearly laughed. I was going to nip into work and give them all a review of the interview before heading home and microwaving a meal for one and watching some TV before falling asleep, probably on my sofa. Lord, my life was really pathetic when I thought about it. I laughed with Eric, wondering what he and everyone else would make of me if they knew the truth. I was a boring woman who happened to strip.

Eric opened the door that led to the hallway and he motioned for me to step out first. I took one step out of his office when he mentioned Niall Brigant and I nearly tripped over my feet as I spun around to look at him. My jaw was slack and I couldn't breathe.

"Are you serious?"

"Yep. He's been working on this new musical, a follow up of his hit Summerland." We both said the last word together.

Of course I knew who Niall Brigant was. He was a god of musical theatre. Some called him the fairy prince of Broadway, as his smash hit Summerland was all about fairies. Not your typical fairies though. They were beautiful, smart, and surrounded by magic, but every single character was also strong and violent. It was a fantastic show and even if you hadn't seen it, you had certainly heard about it.

"Wow." Was there anything else he was holding back about tonight that would add to my nerves? Maybe the Queen of England and Brad Pitt were going to be there as well! I smiled up at Eric, more nervous than before, and I was struck again by how tall he actually is. My eyes were level with his chest and I was wearing heels. I almost laughed at the absurd height difference between us, but I was too flustered with lust and nerves.

"Exactly. Do you think you'll be able to handle it?" I loved the way he said 'Exactly'. I wasn't sure why - maybe it was his accent.

"Are you Swedish?" My curiosity perked up and I saw a flash of surprise pass his features before replying. I fiddled with the strap of my handbag as we walked along the hallway towards the front desk and Pam.

"Yes, actually. I lived there until I was eighteen." I smiled at my correct guess.

"Oh, you've got just a slight accent. I thought I recognised it."

"You know Sweden?" He seemed surprised by my statement.

I nodded. "A friend and I went to a couple places in Europe a few years ago. I was only there for a couple of days, but I loved everything about it. The food, the architecture, the smell..."

Eric smiled at my words, obviously thinking of his past there. "I have always wanted to go back and stay longer, but the opportunity never came up."

"My parents still live there. It's been a while since I went back home and saw them." It was easy to hear the regret in his voice.

He continued, "I thought I might go next month, but if this Sophie-Anne fashion show goes ahead, then that idea is pretty much out the window."

"That's a shame. I'm sure they must miss you." I wasn't really sure what to say. It was strange that he was being so open with me, but I wasn't complaining.

"I miss them. Last time I saw them was over two years ago at my sister's wedding. She's having a baby now."

We reached the door and Eric kindly opened it for me, guiding me through with a brief touch on the small of my back. His touch felt like fire. Distracted, I couldn't find any words to say.

I looked around and saw Lafayette standing at the desk with Pam who looked bored by their conversation. They both looked up and Eric quickly moved his hand away from my back and it felt cold and bare where his hand no longer lay.

Both Pam and Lafayette paused when they saw us. Eric walked ahead of me towards them. Lafayette was wearing a long black t-shirt with a glitter and silver pattern that went over his jeans. He had a big belt made of chains wrapped around his waist and one black earring in his right ear and a dangly silver one in the other. His head was wrapped per usual in a scarf and his eyes were dark with mascara and eye shadow. I smiled and he smiled back, his lips big and shiny with lip liner and gloss.

"Hello Boss Man." I rolled my eyes at Lafayette's greeting to Eric.

He nodded his head towards me. "Bitch."

How could I forget Lafayette and his poetic way with words? I gave him a small wave and couldn't help the slightly humorous filled sigh that escaped my lips.

"Lafayette, do not forget who you are talking to." Eric's tone was low and warning and I couldn't help but look up at him. His eyes were blazing and his face was like stone.

"I know who ya are, honey child an' ya'll know me. You know dis is the most respectful I am."

I couldn't help the smile that lit up my face. I honestly didn't know whether to be shocked or laugh at him.

"Please." Pam muttered under her breath, but loud enough for us all to hear.

"Now, Bitch an' me have a date. I'm gunna show her up an' down dis whole place!" I heard the jingle of his bangles as he reached for my hand.

"Lafayette, it is customary for a member of management to give Miss Stackhouse the tour. If you will excuse us, I am sure you have work that needs doing and I'm sure Miss Stackhouse will be happy to come see you later."

Lafayette made a slight pout and tilted his head my way. I couldn't help the blush that spread across my face as he quite obviously gave Eric and me a look of doubt.

"All right. I'll see ya later then."

"Bye, La La." I winked.

La La was a nickname Tara had the pleasure of sharing with me. Lafayette's mother called him that when he was growing up. He often attributed that as the reason why he was... well, just why he was. He gave me a kiss on the cheek and turned to Pam before he left.

"Bye bye Hooker."

Pam bared her teeth and hissed at him in a way I just found hilarious. I covered my mouth with my hand and stifled my giggle with a cough.

"No. Wait. Don't go." Her voice dripping in sarcasm.

Lafayette just walked towards the elevator, ignoring her obvious insult.

"I'm sorry about that. I told him it was okay to meet me here." I looked between Pam and Eric.

Pam smiled at me and stood up from her chair. She had a nail file in one hand and I guessed that's what she had been doing earlier.

"Oh, don't worry about him. He always... brightens up the day."

She was joking right? She sounded serious, but it was becoming a regular occurrence that I had no idea if Pam meant what she was saying or not.

Pam turned to Eric and they began speaking in Swedish again. I stood there feeling and no doubt looking incredibly uncomfortable. It must be me they were talking about. Pam outright threw a couple of looks my way during the conversation. Eric's tone was businesslike and low. I realised he was always quite quiet and calm. I wondered how he got to such a high powered position. He seemed extremely confident. He definitely seemed to know what he wanted and how to get it. The fact that he was throwing me into the deep end tonight was a perfect example of that. I found him incredibly sexy, not to mention his back was slightly turned to me and I could see the outline of a perfect butt being hugged by his trousers. I looked up and Pam caught my eye. She had seen me taking a peek and was now smirking. I felt my blush creep back.

Eric muttered something before turning to me with a very cold look set on his face. This couldn't be good at all. I felt a flash of panic rise up inside me. Maybe the reason they were talking in Swedish was because Pam was telling him who I really was. That would certainly explain the angered look on his face right now.

"Sookie, please follow me."

I looked wide eyed at Pam and she just raised her eyebrow at me, encouraging me to do so.

"Okay. Is there somewhere I can put my folder? It's a little heavy to walk around with."

I was a little stunned by his sudden change of character, but I maybe this was normal. He sighed and pointed at Pam's desk where I quickly put my portfolio safely behind. He was already walking to the elevator and showed no sign of slowing down. I jogged a little to catch up to him and we stood by the doors in silence waiting for them to open.

I racked my brains trying to figure out what just happened. Did I saying something? Did Pam? Less than five minutes ago, we were having a friendly conversation about Sweden and now he was acting as if I just crashed his favourite car. I couldn't help the overwhelming need to cry. This man had me so confused. How could I be so attracted to him and scared of him at the same time?

"Pam tells me you work part time at a bar."

I looked up at Eric and saw him smoothing that loose bit of hair behind his ear again. My head screamed. Pam did tell him about our first meeting. He was just asking that to see if I'd open up and admit it.

"Yes. I'm not there tonight though, so it's no problem. Even if I was, I don't think I'd ever give up an opportunity like this."

"You'd be a fool not to."

Okay, maybe I was panicking gratuitously. I smiled. I had learnt that word a week ago on my word-of-the-day calendar and was proud to use it, even if it was just in my head.

"I'm going to take you to the head of photography's department first, as that's where you'll be situated."

I nodded, excited to see where I could potentially be working. My heartbeat was slowing down and my breath was now evening out. This man sure did know how to make my pulse race.

"So what bar do you work at? Anywhere I know?"

"Probably not. It's a social club."

"Ah. I probably wouldn't then."

We both stood there in silence as we watched the lights on the elevator change and indicate what floor we were on.

Eric coughed and started talking again. I looked over at him, but he was facing the doors.

"Please forgive me. Pam and I often talk in Swedish; it's as natural as English to you is."

I turned and looked at the door, smiling inwardly at his apology. "That's okay. Lafayette's cousin Tara and I have all these code words we use when talking to each other. We used to joke around using them when we were younger, but they come in handy now that we're adults. Sometimes I wish I could just read her thoughts."

I glanced back over at Eric. Maybe I shared too much. I saw Eric quickly turn to look at the doors. Was he looking at me when I was just speaking? I mean that's completely normal, but why look away as if you've been caught staring at the person's paper sitting next to in an exam.

"Code words?" He laughed slightly. It was a deep warm chuckle that made me laugh as well.

"Oh yeah."

"Like what?"

"Um... I shouldn't really tell you. Tara wouldn't be happy if she found out." The absurdity of this conversation was not lost on me.

"I concur." Eric was suddenly serious again and I noticed the chunk of hair behind his ear slip over as he nodded.

"But what if we needed to speak about something tonight? I don't think we have enough time for me to teach you Swedish."

A smile broke out over my face and I could help but look at him like a grinning lunatic.

"All right, but you have to promise not to tell her!" This really is quite childish I told him out loud and he agreed.

"Say someone is... stretching the truth slightly only you're not sure or just want someone to back up your opinion. Well, I'd look over at Tara and say "Just like our friend Jamie." If Tara agreed with me, then she'd say yes. If she thinks or knows the other person is telling the truth then she'll just disagree or say I'm thinking of someone else."

I couldn't read the expression on Eric's face. "It's silly, I know..."

"No, I like it. We might need that tonight actually. Who is Jamie?"

"No one. We just didn't want to use the name of someone we knew; otherwise, we might actually get confused. Plus, Jamie could be male or female so..." I let the last word hang there.

The doors of the elevator pinged open and Eric gestured with his hand for me to go first.

"Thank you."

As I walked past him, I felt his hand brush my arm. He then placed it quite contentedly on the small of my back like before. I wondered if it was something he usually did when guiding woman around on the company tour or if it was only me. Damn it, Sookie! Stop thinking like a thirteen year old with a crush on her teacher. This was Eric Northman - hard-ass chief of Leif Magazine.

I looked around where we were properly and as Eric started speaking again, it took me a minute to focus on his words. This place was stunning. Exactly as I imagined it, but yet completely different. I felt intimidated and small, but I also had a sense that I was home. I smiled and followed Eric as he walked down a row of open work stations. This was where I belonged and I was determined to work my ass off until it was mine. No more dancing to loud music in front of strange men again . . . unless I was out clubbing to celebrate my new job!

X

The tour was quite quick. Eric introduced me to Marie-Star and all the other members of the team, some of whose names I had already forgotten. Marie-Star was lovely and friendly, a petite woman with short hair and a buzzing personality. I could see myself working well with her. When Eric's back was turned, she suggested that I come by and show her my photos from tonight before I showed them to Eric tomorrow. She was quite shocked about the whole idea of me having an "audition" when Eric told her and that just confused me more. Did he usually just hire people straight out or turn them away? Why was I suddenly "special."

I thanked Marie-Star and Eric finished the tour with a trip to a photo shoot that was currently taking place. It was a centre piece with an up and coming film star. He explained that when this edition goes out, their movie will have just hit the cinemas and we would be the biggest and only magazine to have an interview and shoot of this scale. I nodded and realised how much of a risk this was. What if the movie was a flop and Leif was stuck with a six page spread of somebody no one cared about? Then again, Eric Northman didn't become the big boss man of Leif without taking some risks.

Eric and I organised a time and place to meet this evening and when I say organized, I mean Eric told me what time I would be picked up and instructed me to tell Pam my address when we got back to his floor. The elevator ride was casual and we talked about a small Swedish restaurant that wasn't far from my house. It turned out Eric actually owned a large percent of that company when he stumbled across it one day and fell in love with it. We laughed when we both mentioned a certain waitress that was lovely, but a bit clumsy.

Eric motioned for me to go first when the elevator doors opened to his reception area and as soon as I stepped out, I saw Lafayette waiting for me in the same chair I was sat in. Gosh, it felt like ages ago since I was dragged into the bathroom and basically felt up by Pam. I glanced over towards the woman and she winked at me.

I shook Eric's hand and thanked him. I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. Eric stalked away towards his office without another word and I felt confident I had made a good impression. Now, it was just my work tonight that could make or break it for me.

X

Lafayette and I went to a small coffee shop across the road from the Leif Magazine Building and we found a quiet corner before a teenage girl came over and took our order. It was a sweet place and I hoped we could make it our regular meeting place if I got the job. Lafayette waited a whole minute after the waitress left before slapping his hand on the table and glaring at me.

"Bitch, you better tell me what you did to Mr Stick-Up-His-Ass back before I rip your hair out!"

I laughed and picked up a hard cube of sugar from a tiny bowl in the middle of the table and placed it on my tongue and licked it.

"I honestly don't know. This morning has been such a roller coaster. I don't know what to think."

"Eric, the honey Viking himself, is wound so tight he would fly to de moon if someone got him sprung."

I narrowed my eyes. Was he saying what I think he was? Or was it just wishful thinking...

"I dunno know what in hell you did girl, but do it again tonight an ya'll get this job."

The young girl came over with my black coffee and La La's raspberry herbal tea. We thanked her and she smiled before leaving.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say ya busted out some of ya'll moves an' gave him a lap dance."

I smiled and, as Lafayette started grinding in his chair, I had to turn away and focus my attention on my drink. I felt my cheeks burn bright.

"Well, it's funny you should mention that..." I trailed off.

"No! No you didn't! In his office?"

I could see the cogs working in his brain, almost picturing it happening.

I shook my head. "Gosh no. I was at the club last night and a big group of people came in. Eric was one of them. Of course, I didn't know that at the time."

"Alcide's bachelor party."

"Yeah. Anyway, before I knew what was happening, I was giving Eric a lap dance."

I took a sip of my drink, hoping its coolness would put out some of the fire I felt burning inside.

Lafayette was shaking his head, his mouth agape. "Did he recognise you?"

"No! I wear a wig and he wasn't expecting Sookie Stackhouse, photographer, to actually be Raven, lap dancer. At least I hope he didn't. He showed no sign of recognising who I actually am."

I needed to know how deep I was. If this ever got out, how much trouble was I in?

"But Lafayette, Pam was there and she recognised me instantly."

Lafayette waved his hand in front of him. "Don't worry about her none. She's a minx an' a downright evil bitch, but she wouldn't tell Eric. Hell, she's been trying ta get him laid fo' years. I think she would actually enjoy this all."

I nodded. That was good, I guess.

"You know, I thought this all smelt of trouble. Pam was too smug when I saw her earlier. Hooker knew then an' didn't tell me!"

"She seemed almost nice. She helped me so I didn't remind Eric of Raven too much."

I reached into my bag and grabbed Eric's tie. "I wore this. It's Eric's tie from last night. Part of my dance was to take it off, help him relax. I kept it and I guess it gave me away to her. She told me to take it off and warned me about Eric. He probably would have put two and two together if she hadn't."

Lafayette reached over and took the silk blue tie from my hand. I continued to explain everything that happened in the interview - how I thought he called me Raven; how we talked about Sweden; how he touched my back. Lafayette was most surprised about the event that we were going to tonight. When I finished talking, I looked over at the tie. Lafayette was practically drooling over it.

"Can I keep this?"

"La La!" I laughed and swiped it out of his hands.

"Thin's are starting to make sense now. Everyone's been saying Eric has been a lot more relaxed today. Hell, Amelia said he was even nice to her dis mornin'. An' he wasn't wearing his usual tie..." He paused, which I could only guess was for dramatic effect. "I think he really likes you, Bitch."

"Don't be stupid, he doesn't even know who I am."

"That's not what I mean girl and ya'll know it! Last night ya must have gotten ta him. Maybe pulled de stick out of his ass an' showed him all his been missin'. Then, on some subconscious level this mornin', he knew ya'll the same person an' that's why he was all touchy feely an' invitin' ya'll out on little dates together."

"It's not a date." I pointed at him.

"Whatever. He likes you girl."

Lafayette took a sip of his coffee. "An' by that crazy Sookie smile you have, you like him too."

I shook my head, but I couldn't stop smiling. I cursed myself. "Fuck you."

"Fuck you. You wanna get up on that! I don't blame you. He's one smokin' hot piece of ass, but Sook, girl, as much as I wanna see you get laid, Eric is one fucked up man. He ain't nice. He ain't fun an' he sure as hell ain't gunna care 'bout you. He only cares 'bout the three M's."

I looked over at the man in front of me. He was wearing more makeup than me and probably attracted more male attention than I ever had. I felt my forehead crinkle up at his strange comment and he continued as if I'd asked out loud.

"His magazine, money and motor."

We both laughed. I'd only met Lafayette a couple of time. I could count the hours we'd spend together before just using my fingers, but he obviously cared about me, or maybe be just liked his job and didn't want me swooping in a sleeping with the boss - something I wasn't planning on doing anyway...

"Thank you, Lafayette. But I'm not interested. It would just be too messy. I might be working for him soon and it would be weird. Not to mention what would happen if he found out about my dirty little secret." I reached over and placed my hand on top of his, slipping the tie away when I let go.

"Honey, that'd only make him want you more!"

I wasn't sure if that would be better or not...

We soon headed off. We said thanks to the petite waitress and started walking towards the city. I asked La La if he would get into trouble for going shopping with me, but he promptly told me if he could make me look smoking hot tonight then there was no way Eric Northman would fire him. We spend the rest of our time shopping and chatting about little things. How Tara was. Who to impress tonight and how. Who to avoid and why. I really enjoyed spending time with him, but soon I started yawning and looked down at my watch. I was meeting with Mr Northman at 6.30. I'd only had around five hours sleep the night before and it was going to be a late night again. Even though it was barely noon, I knew if I didn't leave now, then I wouldn't have enough time to take a nap, get my equipment ready and make myself look presentable before I was picked up. We finally both agreed on a dress and even though I had to buy a new bag and shoes to match, I knew I had a great wrap that matched it at home.

I hugged Lafayette goodbye. He promised to see me tomorrow and told me to keep notes about everything Eric did tonight so he could analysis it later. I softly shoved him and winked before accusing him of being jealous and walked back to my car.

It only took me 15 minutes to get home, but by the time I unlocked my door, took my shoes and coat off, I was like a walking zombie. I set the alarm on my mobile phone and got into bed.

Closing my eyes, all I could see was Eric Northman. His blazing eyes when he practically scolded me about tonight compared to his almost pained expressions when we talked about Sweden. He was a mysterious man. The look on his face last night when I bent over him, in between his open legs, his breath and mine mixing in heavy pants, as I stared into his blue eyes. In that moment, he seemed so lonely, sad, and confused, topped off with lust. Lust towards me. I hated how he was today, so demanding, but that's exactly how I was when I was being Raven. He was vulnerable then, and I just bossed him around, telling him not to touch me to the point of almost torture. And I enjoyed it. I snuggled up to my pillow with a smile on my face. Tonight was going to be fine because I knew more about Eric than he knew about me. I also knew that tonight, I was going to make him loosen up and have fun just like last night when he let go of himself. And then... he enjoyed it more than he should have.

X

Thank you all for reading!

Please Review. Hits are like Tru Blood but reviews are like Fairy Blood!

I promise I will not take this long to upload the next chapter and the more reviews I get, the more I focus on writing.

You are all amazing.


	6. No Return

Hello. Here is the next chapter of Mistaken Identity. I've already written half of the next one so there shouldn't be any delay in posting it. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed. You are all amazing and I don't think I'd be writing this right now if it wasn't for all of you. I mean 180 on 5 chapters? All my other stories I was lucky if I got 10 for each one!

I'll just say thanks to everyone now so skip this if you haven't reviewed or if you just want to get to that Eric/Sookie goodness!

KG, you are amazing. You help me out in a way I could never have hoped and feel like I owe you so much more than just this story and my thanks. Seriously though, you are a Goddess to me and it sounds weird, but I want to make you proud of what I write and I'd hate to disappoint you. I promise to try and be as committed to this story as you are to me, though I'm certain I'll never be as quick as you are! I'm truly grateful.

Bebeschtroumph – I may take you up on that offer! I always have so many random ideas but never any ones that help more forward!

Ericlova82- Love the name ;-)

Blueiris – Thanks for the comment, you'll find out what they said but not in this chapter I'm afraid.

Pennylanechic – Wow, 4 reviews! You are awesome! I loved hearing your reaction at the end of each chapter, I couldn't help but smile. Hope you enjoy this one!

Vane3131 – Thanks for the review, btw I love your profile pic. He is just too hot for words.

PRel2011 – Thank you, i'm glad you are interested in the characters individually, it might be a little while before I make them a couple, hype up the sexual tension to a peak! Thanks for the Lafayette comment, I'm never too sure with his character which is a shame because I love him in the show!

Were-Bitchagain – Thanks! I love ! aswell!

LB123 – Thanks for the review, I love how you and like 6 other people said "date" in speech marks in reviews! It made me smile.

ILoveVikings – First things first, I love Vikings too. Second, I hope you enjoy their "not" date. Though only the first half is in this chapter.

Alisainwonderland – Thanks for saying my Sookie is perfect, I'm always worried I'll make her too dumb or naive or fake, I'm trying to make her as realistic as possible, including all those little things we think but never say out loud and hopefully not make her seem horrible! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Pinkygirl01 - Hey, you won't find out for a little while but I hope you still enjoy this chapter! Thanks for reviewing.

MelodyAnderson – I agree, like the random connections they feel for each other that in the books make sense but in reality don't. I hope that even though I've included those elements that the characters stay grounded on truth and human behaviour, Eric isn't going to start telling Sookie to yield to him for example lol. Anyway, I hope this chapter doesn't shatter your view on A/H fics. Thank you for the review, I really love reading them, especially from people who normally don't like these kind of stories.

TeaCupHuman – I'm sure I've told you this before, but I love your name, well I love have Alexander says your name lol. I agree with what you're saying, but at what point do you tell a man you're dating that you were a stripper and as the story goes on, Sookie will have to start lying and that's never a good way to start a relationship.

Svmaddict – Thanks for the review, and I guess you'll have to wait and find out! Wow, that is such a teasing comment, sorry!

Kitlina – You'll have to wait for the next chapter cause the party won't be til then! Sorry and thanks for the review!

Orionsbabydoll – The Swedish thing won't come out for a little while, it's not a huge deal but everyone is making it out to be so I might have to look back and rethink the conversation and make it more exciting lol. Thanks for the review though.

Nymoni2009, BaronessJai, ericplenty, kpkisses5921, Morrigan28, Blood And Fangs27, Lovingvikingeric, Tsunami, Ozfan, ShellCat, gracie2thumbs, Vamp Winter, Cate8899, Stephaniesmeow, OldAsDirt, evitakrishna88, SookieEriclover, Alottalove, patito, VAlady, frlarsson, Kira_Kiralina – Hello everyone, I don't really like doing big thank you's but I have to otherwise half this chapter would be just thanking you guys. Anyway, you are all awesome and I really, truly, deeply appreciate each and every comment. The SVM community is so friendly and supportive! I wish I'd discovered it sooner. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and please let me know what you think because I do love the tingling I get whenever I see I have a review and it's all because of you guys!

Anyway, on with the story...

This chapter is from Sookie's POV.

X

Chapter 6

No Return.

X

I woke up two minutes before my wake-up call went off at three and sighed when I saw the message waiting for me on my phone. Switching off the alarm, I opened the text and read it.

_Hope the interview went well. Will you still be working here? If not, then maybe we could meet up for drinks one night? Bill X_

I didn't know how to respond. I was still groggy from just waking up and had more important things to worry about than my overly obsessive boss, so I ignored the text and had a shower.

When I was towel drying my hair, I glanced over at my shopping bags. I hoped I wouldn't be under dressed. I pulled my dress out of the fancy wrapping and ran my hands along the soft material, it only when just above my knees, was that too casual for a musical preview? How was she supposed to know? The dress was a beautiful deep red, not too flashy, with white flowers and swirls running up from the bottom that disappeared as they went up the dress. I grabbed my new shoes and my bag, quickly getting everything I needed and shoving it into the small clutch along with a couple of band-aids just in case the shoes began to rub.

After I got dressed and put on some make-up, a little more than usual, I partially blow-dried my hair, leaving it down and slightly damp, so it would curl naturally, and put some moose in it for volume. I smiled at my reflection, feeling pretty good about myself. I looked sexy, but not slutty – hot, but smart.

Tonight was going to be great. I was going to watch one of my favourite musical's brand new sequel with an incredibly attractive man who was going to give me my dream job, so I tried to push down the niggling feelings of doubt and nerves. I sprayed some perfume on my wrists, neck and lightly over my dress and headed out of the room shutting the door behind me.

Walking down the stairs with my bag and heels clutched in my hands and my favourite pashmina wrapped around my shoulders. My mind kept wandering back to Eric Northman. What would we talk about tonight? Would he be as hot tempered as he had been this afternoon? I smiled when I thought about his hand on my back, but quickly stopped myself when I heard a noise coming from my kitchen. I slowly walked down the next couple of steps until my bare feet touched the carpet. I was suddenly very thankful that I didn't put my heels on upstairs as I silently dropped my bag on the floor and gripped my shoes tightly in my hand, ready to strike if need be.

I took a couple of deep breaths, hoping my life wasn't about to end in a violent and bloody way. Turning the corner of the hallway slowly, I lifted my right arm up and held the other by my side. I sent a quick silent prayer to God and stepped into the kitchen.

"Fuck! Jason, what are you doing?" My older brother was resting quite comfortably at my kitchen table eating some chicken left over from my lunch the previous day. "Why are you eating my chicken?"

Jason was a couple years older than me, but acted a lot younger. He had an easy life. He was a star employee at his building job even though he did just enough to get by. He was stunningly handsome with short blond hair, the same colour as mine, and very muscular body. Women everywhere practically threw themselves at him and I had been on the receiving end of more than a few jealous glares from women who thought we were a couple.

Today, however, he looked more serious, like he had bad news – similar to the way he looked the day he found out Gran had died. This couldn't be good. I dropped my shoes on the floor and sat down across from him.

"What's wrong Jas?" my voice soft and quite. I began to pray to God again, but for a completely different reason.

"God Sookie. Nothing's wrong!"

I let out a huge sigh of relief and then smacked him on the head.

"Ow! I'm sorry 'bout the chicken, but I'm starvin'. I came over 'cause I need to tell you something, but it ain't bad!"

"Why'd you have to scare me like that? I haven't seen you in ages and you show up lookin' all sad like your dog died. What am I supposed to think?" I let out a frustrated sigh and crossed my arms. I was suddenly aware that I was wearing a fancy dress and more make-up than usual. I hoped he didn't notice. He wasn't typically observant when it came to these kinds of things.

"I'm datin' Daphne again."

I could feel my face begin fall, but I caught myself and gave him a huge toothy grin.

"That's fantastic. When..." Words got caught in my throat and I had to cough before I could speak again. "When did you start seeing each other again?"

Jason's eyes got a little brighter when he saw I was happy about his new fling. I didn't have the heart to let him down.

"Well, we hooked up at Hoyt's birthday an' kind of been seein' each other since then. Nothing too serious, but she's a real nice girl. I can see why you're friends."

Daphne and I weren't friends. We worked together at Bill's club, but we barely talked and, when we did, it was her telling me and the other girls about her latest sexual adventures. Whenever it was she and I alone, which was rare, she always went back to the subject of Jason because he was the only thing we had in common except our job.

"Wow. She has been a lot happier at work." I mused. It suddenly made sense; Daphne avoided me a couple of times this week, but I assumed it was her general mood swings or maybe just me catching her at the wrong time.

Jason smiled sheepishly and all my slightly bitter feelings about their rekindled relationship disappeared. It was nice to see him happy and, with Daphne, it was a fling that could easily turn into something more. I actually hoped it worked out.

"Well I hope it works out. In fact, I'm sure it will." I patted his hand which was resting on the table and flashed him a huge grin before standing up and taking the empty plate and placing it in the sink to wash up later.

"So, Sook, who's the hot date?"

I nearly slipped as I spun around to look at my brother. "It's a work thing, not a date."

"Work thing? For Bill? Sook, you really shouldn't get messed up in that kind of stuff. It's dangerous an' I'm pretty sure it's illegal." Jason had twisted in his seat so he was facing me. His expression was sweet, but confused, and I couldn't help but hug him.

"No. It's not like that. It's for that magazine I told you 'bout. The boss is havin' me go to a big party tonight . . . you know, take some photos an' make sure I can behave. He won't give me the job before, so this is kind of an extension of the interview." My southern accent was getting stronger, which always happened when I spent too much time with Jason or anyone from around the area I grew up in.

"Oh, that's great Sook. I'm just lookin' out for you. I don't want my little sis . . . ."

"I'll be fine. Mr Northman is a nice guy and it's strictly professional." I pushed away the feelings that swelled up inside at the mere mention of Eric Northman's name. I could feel myself blush, but hid it by turning to open the fridge and grabbing a can of Coke. The refrigerated air helped to cool the hotness of my cheeks.

"Northman?" I turned to Jason and nodded, cracking open the lid of my can in the process. "Eric Northman? I did some work for him a couple years back. Real nice guy. His girlfriend or wife or whatever was a complete 10, but with issues."

I could feel my forehead crinkle up with confusion. Sometimes I think me and Jason are from separate worlds and he forgets that I don't speak 'dude'.

"A what with issues?"

Jason followed my lead and took a can of Coke from the fridge and opened it, taking a huge gulp before answering.

"Yeah. She's super foxy hot, but crazy as they come. She started yelling at Hoyt 'cause he was doing work in the hallway an' apparently in her way. She bitched an' moaned 'bout everything we were doing an' kept changing her mind all the time. Northman was all right, but I don't understand how he put up her. I swear if any woman started acting like that with me, I'd be outta there quicker than you can say 'crazy bitch'."

I nodded, a feeling of disappointment washing over me. Of course he had a girlfriend. He was handsome, smart, and rich. No doubt, some gorgeous woman already had her nails in him.

"Sook, if he tries anything with you, you just tell me an' I'll kick his ass. He was a nice guy to us, but to be with someone like her, he has to be messed up or something. Don't let him touch you or nothin'. Ain't no job worth it."

"Thanks for the warning, but he's very professional. Besides, you know I can take care of myself." I slapped him on the arm lightly and hoped we could move on from this topic of conversation. "How is work? Is Hoyt okay after the whole break up?" I hoped my attempt to change the subject would go unnoticed.

"Work is good. Hoyt is fine." Jason finished off his drink with one more gulp and stood up.

"Look, Daphne was really worried about me tellin' you. She doesn't want Bill to find out she's seein' me again cause he says it affects her job. We really want this to work this time an' the less people know, then the less pressure an' stuff - so don't tell anyone, 'kay?"

I smiled and nodded, it seemed my brother was finally growing up. He really did seem serious about this.

"Yeah that's fine and if things go well tonight then maybe I won't even work there tomorrow!"

"What time are you leaving?" I quirked an eyebrow up at him. Was he being considerate or did he just want to know how long he could stay and eat my food? I glanced over at the clock on the microwave. Its bright numbers were telling me I had around thirty minutes before I was getting picked up.

"'Bout half an hour."

"Cool. You eaten yet?" Jason was playing with the tab on his empty can. I knew this was his way of asking for me to cook him something.

"No. I should, but I'm not really hungry. You want me to make you something?"

"Only if it's quick. I don't want you to be late or anything."

"Nah, it's okay. A sandwich all right? You ate all my chicken, so how about..." I opened a cupboard and all I saw were tins of chili and tuna. My cupboard, like my life, was boring and unexciting. "A tuna melt?"

"That'd be awesome." Jason gave me a quick kiss and left to the living room. I soon heard the TV switch on.

I sighed and grabbed a block of cheese from the fridge. I hoped I wouldn't smell of tuna for the rest of the night. It only took about three minutes to get everything ready. I waited for my panini toaster to warm up; it was a gift from Tara for my last birthday. I used it a lot more than a healthy twenty-something woman should. After long nights of dancing, sometimes I came home and all I craved was a melted cheese sandwich. This would probably explain why my thighs were a bit more 'curvy' than the other dancers.

I sipped on my coke. Even the smell of hot food didn't make me feel hungry. It must be the nerves. Just as well, as this dress didn't have much leeway and would fit a lot better if I didn't eat. I'd also have to steer clear of alcohol unless I wanted to make a fool out of myself by getting stupidly tipsy on one drink. I plated up the food and took it into the living room and found Jason lazing on my sofa watching a police show. He grabbed the plate and said thanks with a kiss on the head and rested it on his stomach before continuing to watch the show.

I sat down on the edge of a chair and watched him eat. I didn't have a great deal of family left and even though Jason annoyed me sometimes, I loved him deeply. I was so glad when he told me he got a job in the same city as me and we lived close by because it would break my heart not to have him near me. I didn't dare tell him, but I loved it when he randomly popped in and I could mother him.

I quickly grabbed my camera bag, my handbag, and my shoes, which I left abandoned in the hallway. I quickly put the shoes on and started double checking that I had everything I would need for tonight when I heard Jason cough slightly. I looked up at him and the sudden noise.

"Sookie, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Just nervous about tonight. It's make or break, you know?" I told him casually and went back to checking if I had a spare flash bulb just in case.

"That's not what I meant." He paused and I looked up at him again. "Are you okay? Are you happy?" His tone was gentle and it reminded me of Gran for a moment.

"Of course I am, why?"

Jason looked a little bit pained for asking. "Well since Gran died and you and Quinn... well, I worry about you. You're single and you work a pretty dodgy job... you must get lonely an' I know I'm not the best brother to you."

My heart swelled and I could feel tears threatening to fall. "Jason, I'm good. Me an' Quinn weren't right for each other. Bill makes sure me and all the girls are safe. And I'll admit, I get lonely since Gran . . . this house is pretty big for just me, but I have a lot going on right now and that helps. You, Jas, are an amazing brother and I love you. Thank you for caring."

I got up and hugged his head in the strange affectionate way that we do. He patted me on the back and I let go. "And don't blame Quinn. We both know he can kill you."

We laughed a little and everything went back to normal for a minute or two before there was a knock at the door. I jumped at the sound, thinking it was strange that I hadn't heard a car pull up.

"That is probably Mr Northman now. Are you okay to let yourself out? I don't want to keep him waiting."

I quickly gathered my two bags and headed to the front door, cursing myself that I wasn't ready to answer the door straight away. I hadn't expected Jason and now I was keeping Eric Northman waiting - not the best way to start the evening.

I grabbed my black fitted trench coat and began to put it on when Jason came up behind me and helped me shove my arms in the sleeves. I thanked him before I slung my bags over my shoulder and answered the door.

Eric Northman was too perfect to be standing in my doorway. His tall frame just managed to fit in the door and my breath temporarily caught in my throat as I took in his black tux and crisp white shirt. His hair was tied back like usual, but this time it was swept back in a loose ponytail. He looked stunning. I was suddenly aware that my house was old and shabby.

"Good evening Miss Stackhouse. Sorry I am late, but finding your house proved to be more difficult than I thought." His tone was warm and friendly yet surprisingly gentlemanly. I really appreciated his manners. It was quite rare to find a gentleman with manners like his so far from the South.

I glanced at the wall clock and it was just before half six. "Hello. You're not late all. Sorry I kept you waiting, but I had a surprise guest."

Mr Northman raised one eyebrow and I couldn't help but admire the way it crinkled up his forehead and made him look extremely sexy with just a hint of cockiness.

"Oh."

"It's my brother, Jason. He just stopped by, nothing important." I said quickly, realising it may have come across as if I had better things to do with my time. Jason thankfully poked his head into the hallway.

"Don't mind me none." I winced slightly at his misuse of the English language. "I was in the neighbourhood an' hungry so thought I'd pop by an' see my baby sister." He put his arm around my shoulders and reached out to shake Eric Northman's hand, which he graciously accepted with a curt nod and smile. "Hi, I'm Jason."

"Pleased to meet you Jason Stackhouse. Have I met you before?" Eric Northman was very pleasant and I was shocked he recognised him after a couple of years and so was Jason by the way he excitedly shook his hand.

"Yeah! I did some work on your house a couple years back. The guest bedroom and stuff. You had that awesome media room and that hot tub!"

Eric Northman nodded and I saw a bit of male pride seep through his usual professional expression. I couldn't help it, but my jaw dropped slightly. I knew he was rich, but the way they talked made it sound like he had a mansion!

"Yes, you guys did a great job. It still looks amazing."

I found myself standing awkwardly between two grown men talking about guy stuff. I smiled kindly at Jason and he must have gotten the message.

"Great! Well it was great meeting you again, Mr Northman-"

"Please, call me Eric."

"Great!" I winced again, that was one too many 'greats'. Eric must have noticed, as he chuckled slightly before speaking.

"It was good to see you too. I hope the company is still running strong, though if the work you do for others is up to the same standard as the work you did for me, I'm sure it is."

"Yeah, me and the boys are working on this contact 'til June and they've already got another one lined up." Jason gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and I kissed him back. "Bye Sook. Good luck tonight."

"Thanks Jas. Don't forget to lock up before you leave."

With that, Eric Northman and I quickly left my hallway and walked out the door to my gravel driveway. The gravel crunched under my heels and I walked a bit slower than usual so I didn't trip or fall flat on my face. I don't know if he did it consciously or not, but Eric Northman took smaller, slower steps so I could keep up with him. Obviously, he was used to walking with girls in heels. It made me feel a little angry, but I brushed it aside before I could give it too much thought.

"You are very lucky to have such a secluded house like this so near the city."

I smiled and looked up into his very blue eyes. "Yes, well me an' my Gran moved here ages ago. We were very lucky 'cause the man who lived here before had to sell quickly, so we got it cheap. It was perfect timing. My Gran used to say it was a sign we did the right thing moving, though the upkeep on such an old house is so expensive and sometimes I'm not sure I feel so lucky anymore." I ran a hand through my hair and tucked it loosely behind my ear. It always brought a sad smile to my face when I talked about Gran.

"How long have you lived in LA?"

"Five years. You?" I asked. This was nice. It was casual, even if the whole time we walked I was remembering the feel of his strong hands on my waist from the night before. I suppressed a shiver that ran down my spine.

"Over 10. If you don't mind me asking, how old you are?"

"No, I don't mind and I'm 25." I was very aware of how strong my southern accent was coming through and as quickly and quietly as I could, I cleared my throat. "What about you Mr Northman? Only fair seein' as you just asked a woman one of the two questions a man should never ask – a woman's age and a woman's weight."

He took in a deep breath and I couldn't help but smile. His arms tensed and I would have felt guilty if I wasn't thinking about running my hands up and down his muscles. "I'm 34."

I nodded, but my eyes widened and my mind now focused on something completely new. A huge stretch limo was parked at the end of my drive on the main street. It looked brand new, almost like a picture because it was so shiny. I thought I was just getting a lift, car sharing because there wasn't enough parking and I didn't know where we were going. "Wow." My shock was apparent.

Eric Northman scoffed at this. "Come on, I'm not THAT old!" I did a double take at him. He looked almost embarrassed, almost, straightening his jacket even though it was perfect beforehand.

"No, Lord no! Not you! This limo!" I waved a hand in front of me, as if he wasn't aware that the limo was there already. "This is crazy. I thought we were just gonna take a cab and split the fare or something. I've never..."

"Been in a limo before?" He offered, as he opened the door and gestured for me to get in. He couldn't have looked any sexier and it only made me more nervous as I lifted one foot to step into the vehicle.

"No, never." He then offered me his hand as I gently eased myself on the seat. He slipped in next to me as I scooted across the back seat. When I settled down and took a look around inside, I realised my hand was still resting in his. I quickly released it and mumbled an apology.

It was dark in the back. There were a lot of light - don't get me wrong - but the floor, the leather seats and table were all shiny and black. There was everything I imagined would be in a limo and more. Champagne was chilling in an ice bucket; there was a mini bar, a phone, and a TV. I couldn't help but gawk at it all. Was this Eric's or did he rent it? Where does one buy a limo anyway?

"All right, we're going to De Brassiere Inno. Thank you." I thought for a second that he was talking to me, but when I looked over at Mr Northman I saw him holding down a small button on a pad by the door and speaking into a microphone.

"Brassiere? Are we getting food?" I only had thirty dollars in my purse and all in small bills no less. If that didn't scream suspicious, I didn't know what would.

"Yes we are. Dinner to be exact. Did Pam not tell you?"

Pam. I'd only known Pam for less than twelve hours and I already knew she was manipulative and devious. Helping a stranger hide the fact that she was a stripper from her boss and long time friend said just as much.

"No. She only said you were picking me up at half six. She didn't even tell me what the dress code was or where it is."

Eric Northman considered my words for a moment before replying. "That does sound like her. She told me it is tradition to have a meal before a show and arranged it all for me. Have you already eaten?" He sounded slightly panicked, but maybe I was just projecting my anxiety onto him.

"Luckily, no." I relied, thankful that I didn't eat earlier.

"Good, good. Sorry if this all makes you feel uncomfortable. At least it gives me time to prepare you for tonight." We exchanged polite smiles.

"Um... The evening starts at half seven, which means we aren't expected there 'til eight. The preview will start whenever Niall has managed to speak with everyone individually first." He paused again and reached for the bottle of champagne. The limo began to move and I looked around for a seatbelt but couldn't find one. I then felt foolish for thinking there would be.

"As for where, Niall has a private studio at the back of his property. And I think you look perfect."

My eyes widened and I felt the rush of blood flush my face. He stumbled a little over his next words, which caused me to smile and look down at my hand resting in my lap.

"I mean the clothes you're wearing. They are very appropriate for this event. Professionally speaking." We both knew there was nothing professional about the heat that sparked in his eyes.

"Thank you Mr Northman. I'm just happy I won't feel out of place."

"Please, call me Eric. It's outside office hours and Pam has practically set us up on a date. I think Eric is more fitting." Eric seemed slightly angered by Pam's meddling, which caused my heart to sink just a little. Of course he'd be upset. He had a gorgeous, albeit insane girlfriend at home that he would probably prefer to have dinner with.

"Thank you, Eric. Please call me Sookie."

He handed me a glass of champagne, which I gratefully accepted. I took a tiny sip, but knew I couldn't drink much more on an empty stomach. I suddenly felt very hungry and was glad we were getting food.

"So are you a big fan of Summerland's?" I asked. I was trying to show him I could be professional, but casual, and this seemed like a good place to start.

"Yes. I actually privately funded some of this show. That's the main reason I got invited and am allowed to bring a photographer. We're the only magazine who will be there."

I blew out a breath of air, "No pressure then." We laughed lightly.

"None at all. Even with your lack of experience, I could see your potential and so could Marie-Star. You'll do fine. All it will be is a couple of group photos of some A-list people and some promo shots of the cast."

He took a gulp of his drink and quickly grabbed his phone to check and see if there was any activity. Obviously there was not, as he just sighed and put it back in his jacket pocket. "How was the rest of your day? Not too stressful I hope."

"No, it was good. I went shopping with La La which was fun, even though I had to stop him from trying on every dress he saw."

Eric laughed and I smiled. His laugh was warm, thick, and silky like honey. He had an amazing smile and perfect white teeth. His smile somewhat lazy, halfway between a grin and a smirk. There was nothing about his smile I didn't love and I instantly felt giddy that it was me who made him smile like that.

"At one point there was a very compelling petition going around the office to ban glitter in the work place because of him."

I couldn't help but groan and laugh at this. "Oh Lord. He would have quit instantly if that ever went through."

"It did though. I agreed as a joke, but he just ignored it claiming he's the best columnist we have and if we want to keep him, he comes with glitter and eye shadow."

I took another sip of my drink and nearly choked on it. "He really said that to you?"

"I think he added hooker or bitch at the end just to make his point." Eric shook his head in disbelief, probably recalling the exact conversation. "But what could I do? He has a point; he draws in more woman than I thought a gay man could."

"Well then, I guess we both owe him. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him." It was true. He was the one who got me this very long and strange interview, and I couldn't be more grateful.

Eric ran a hand through his hair, messing it up slightly, a couple strands coming loose from his slicked back ponytail. "I don't know about that. I believe if things are meant to be then they will happen, and if you were meant to work here then somehow we would have met."

Wow, I commented in my head, you have no idea...

"That's nice. It's a good way to look at life."

"Life, work, love." He must have noticed his messed up hair as he now started to sweep the hair back together again. "How did you and Lafayette meet again?"

"Um," While I didn't want to lie, there was no harm in telling the abridged version skipping a couple of details. "Through my friend Tara. She's Lafayette's cousin. We used to go to school together."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Tara a stripper now?" My heart froze and I couldn't breathe. Damn it.

"No, I don't think she's a stripper." Because I know she's an erotic dancer. I could have felt clever at my play on words, but I just felt dirty, like I'd cheated.

"Oh, sorry. I must be thinking of someone else." His voice got distant. I hoped he was thinking of me, well not me, but Raven. He clenched his jaw and suddenly seemed uncomfortable, which made me think maybe he was. He cracked open a window and I could hear music from a restaurant nearby seeping through with the cool evening air. The wind blew my hair over my shoulders and I shivered.

"We're nearly there. Would you like another drink, Sookie" The way he pronounced my name with his accent made me shift in my seat as I felt a flutter low in my stomach. He gestured to my empty glass. I hadn't realised I drank the whole thing.

"Oh, no thanks. I don't want to be drunk on my first night out or anything." I looked out the windows and saw how fancy this part of town was. All the old buildings were covered in ornate decorations and signs. People walking down street were in beautiful dresses and suits that looked like they must have cost a small fortune. I instantly felt out of place and slightly ashamed with my cheap dress and huge camera bag. "Is it all right to leave my bag in here? I don't want to drag my camera around in a nice restaurant."

He gave me a warm smile and held out his hand to help me out of the limo. When I stood up outside, I nearly stumbled, but he supported me with a strong hand on the small of my back. I looked up at him to say thanks, but lost myself for a moment in a wide pair of bright blue eyes; the electricity that came from them ran through me. His brow crinkled up and he looked almost pained.

"Thank you."

He straightened up and removed his hand, quickly moving as far away from me as he could, like I'd burned him. "That's quite all right Miss Stackhouse."

It had only been fifteen minutes since he picked me up, but something suddenly changed and he was backing away, shutting himself off from me. Had I done something wrong? I didn't understand because up to this point I thought we were getting on rather well. Actually, we were getting on a little too well. My mind flickered back to the moment his lips had briefly touched mine last night and the feel of his muscular arms and sculpted chest running under my palms. I was getting in too deep and despite my mind screaming at me not to, I didn't care because right now all I wanted to do was wrap my arms around his tall frame and kiss the frown off his perfectly sculpted soft lips. Oh fuck.

X

So...Love it? Hate it? What do you think of my version of Jason? I felt like it's a bit of a "getting there" filler chapter where I'm just writing so we can get to the party but please let me know what you think.

Also, I get all my chapter titles from songs so if you have any particular Sookie/Eric songs please let me know as I'm also in need of more inspiration!

Thank you all for reading and please review, it only takes a second and I really do value each and every one.


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